WASHINGTON

SENATE PASSES $800 BILLION INCREASE IN DEBT LIMIT

A divided Senate approved an $800 billion increase in the federal debt limit yesterday, a major boost in borrowing that Senator Kerry and other Democrats blamed on the fiscal policies of President Bush. The mostly party line, 52-44, vote was expected to be followed by House passage today. Enactment would raise the government’s borrowing limit to $8.18 trillion – more than eight times the total federal debt that existed when President Reagan took office in 1981.

In his first remarks on the Senate floor since his presidential bid ended in defeat two weeks ago, Mr. Kerry, a Democrat of Massachusetts, said his former opponent had presided over “the worst fiscal turnaround in our nation’s entire history.”

He was referring to the change from the $5.6 trillion in surpluses that were projected for the next 10 years when Mr. Bush took office in 2001, to the $2.3 trillion in deficits now estimated for the coming decade. Mr. Kerry and other Democrats complained that those bills will have to be paid by future generations.

“This can be called a birth tax, a birth tax that is dumped on the back of every American child unwillingly,” said Mr. Kerry, who voted against the bill.

Republican senators did not join in the debate, underscoring how politically uncomfortable the measure is for them. That discomfort was highlighted when they refused to bring the bill to a vote before the elections.

Administration officials urged lawmakers to act quickly. The government reached its $7.38 trillion borrowing cap last month, and since then the Treasury Department has paid federal bills by taking cash from a civil service retirement account, which it plans to repay.

– Associated Press

BUSH NAMES MIERS AS WHITE HOUSE COUNSEL

President Bush yesterday named Harriet Miers, a longtime Texas associate, as White House counsel.

Ms. Miers succeeds Alberto Gonzales, nominated by Mr. Bush to be attorney general, said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.

“Harriet Miers is a trusted adviser on whom I have long relied for straightforward advice,” Mr. Bush said in a statement.

Formerly Mr. Bush’s personal lawyer in Texas, Ms. Miers came with the president to the White House as his staff secretary, the person in charge of all the paperwork that crosses the president’s desk. Ms. Miers was promoted to deputy chief of staff in June 2003.

From 1995 to 2000,she was chairwoman of the Texas Lottery Commission. In 1992, she became the first woman president of the Texas State Bar. She has been president of the Dallas Bar Association as well, becoming in 1985 the first woman in that post.

“Harriet has the keen judgment and discerning intellect necessary to be an outstanding counsel,” the president said.

– Associated Press

REPUBLICANS PICK DOLE TO HEAD 2006 SENATE CAMPAIGNS

Senate Republicans yesterday narrowly chose North Carolina Senator Dole to lead their campaign operations for 2006.

The race for chairing the National Republican Senatorial Committee pit Mrs. Dole, a familiar face who led the Red Cross and is married to Robert Dole, the former senator of Kansas, against Senator Coleman of Minnesota, an energetic politician who defeated Vice President Mondale in 2002. Both are first-term senators.

Mrs. Dole, 68, won the job after getting 28 votes to 27 votes for Mr. Coleman in a caucus of GOP senators and senators-elect.

Supporters of Mr. Coleman, 55, argued that, as a native New Yorker who won in a Democratic-leaning state, his appeal across party lines could help Republicans win Senate battleground states in 2006.Mrs.Dole’s supporters said she would help Republicans win over female and minority voters by putting a “different face on the party.” As the new chairwoman, Mrs. Dole will be responsible for raising money and recruiting candidates for the party in the 2006 Senate races.

– Associated Press

NORTHEAST

‘BIG DIG’ LEAKS WORSE THAN FEARED

BOSTON – Leaks in the Big Dig highway tunnel system are more widespread than officials have acknowledged, and top construction managers warned as far back as six years ago about problems that could cause waterproofing failures, records show.

Documents obtained by The Boston Globe show there are nearly 700 leaks in a single 1,000-foot section of an Interstate 93 tunnel. And project managers have collectively signed off on at least $10 million in cost overruns to repair leaks and water damage since early 2001, the records show.

Attorney General Tom Reilly said yesterday that it is too early to assign blame, but said the “problem is far broader than one person” and that the cost of the repairs will run into the millions. Officials have insisted that the tunnels are safe for drivers. The leaks are the latest embarrassing chapter for the Big Dig. With its price tag of $14.6 billion, it is the costliest highway project in American history.

– Associated Press

MIDWEST

WISCONSIN TO INVEST IN STEM CELL RESEARCH

MADISON, Wis. – Governor Doyle announced plans yesterday to invest nearly $750 million to support human embryonic stem cell research and other medical experiments. The Democratic governor wants to use a combination of public and private money to build two research centers and support scientists studying infectious disorders, cardiovascular illnesses, and Alzheimer’s disease. Parts of Mr. Doyle’s proposal are subject to the Legislature’s approval, but he can begin some projects on his own.

– Associated Press