Nearly two-dozen House Democrats have introduced a resolution signaling their strong opposition to any Social Security cuts as part of a debt-ceiling agreement.

The resolution from Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) is a reaction to President Obama's openness to consider spending reductions in Social Security and Medicare in order to reach a deal on raising the debt limit. These and other spending cuts appear likely to make up a significant portion of any final agreement, which has stalled over Republican objections to the inclusion of any tax increases.

Freshman Rep. James Lankford (R-Okla.) on Monday said deficit spending by the government has put it at great risk of an interest rate hike that would increase U.S. debt service payments even more.

"We've tried every method in the Fed's bag of tricks to protect our interest rate, because if the rate goes up at all, the house of cards falls," he said on the House floor.

Sen. McConnell said Casey Anthony's surprising acquittal proves it will be difficult to convict accused terrorists in civilian courts.

Democrat says pressure from the financial world will force Republicans to accept tax increases in a debt-ceiling deal.

The Senate meets at 2 p.m., and at 5:30 p.m. is expected to hold a cloture vote on S. 1323, a sense of the Senate bill expressing support for raising taxes on people who earn $1 million or more a year.

The vote comes just hours after the White House and House Republicans announced that they remain deeply split over whether taxes should be a part of any debt-ceiling solution. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Sunday said Republicans can't support a Democratic proposal to reduce the deficit by $4 trillion deal because that plan involves at least $1 trillion in tax increases.

Elizabeth Warren's appearance before the House Thursday will mark the latest round in an ongoing dispute over the agency's future.

Washington got hit square in the jaw this week by a terrible jobs report that can only complicate efforts to reach a debt ceiling deal, which must be reached before August 2 in order to avoid a government default and/or partial government shutdown.

Does government spending create jobs? Does cutting the budget deficit create jobs? Can raising taxes be part of the equation after such a bad jobs report? Which programs can be cut that won't hurt job creation? Does anything government does have any effect on jobs at all?

Republicans and Democrats now have just three weeks to find the answers, or more likely, struggle to reach the true grand compromise: the right ingredients in a debt ceiling, spending and tax agreement that can also be sold to voters as a jobs plan (limited snickering at the edges from partisan economists would also help).

Senate committees next week will delve into a wide array of issues that range from examining the Environmental Protection Agency's part in  protecting the nation's drinking water sources to weighing in on the U.S.'s role in the turbulent political and military environment in Sudan. 

A list of featured committee hearings to be held next week follows: Read more...

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will testify at the House Financial Services Committee next week on monetary policy and the state of the economy. His Wednesday testimony will occur with the memory of Friday's poor jobs report that said the unemployment rate rose to 9.2 percent, and only 18,000 private sector jobs were created.

Also next week, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testifies at the House Budget Committee on the Independent Payment Advisory Board, which Republicans say is a healthcare rationing board.