Most Of Mass. House Delegation Votes Against Debt Bill

Update at 12:42 p.m.: The Senate has passed the bill. As expected, Sens. Scott Brown and John Kerry voted in favor of the legislation.

Original post: Passage of the House bill raising the nation's debt ceiling Monday night came without the support of most of the all-Democratic Massachusetts House delegation.

Seven of the 10 Democrats voted against the bill, saying it cut spending too much on important social programs.

Rep. Jim McGovern voted against it because the bill featured only cuts and didn't raise revenues.

"There were no revenues involved," McGovern said. "The Donald Trumps of the world have to pay nothing, but middle class families and those who are poor bear the brunt of this bill, and I thought that was wrong."

Rep. Barney Frank says he voted no because it exempts the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from cuts. Rep. Ed Markey says the cuts were too deep.

"This will lead to tremendous cuts in hospitals, for the National Institutes of Health, for higher education and for the technology sector, which is central to the long-term economic growth of Massachusetts," Markey said.

Rep. Michael E. Capuano, Rep. John F. Tierney, Rep. John Olver and Rep. Richard Neal all also voted against the proposal.

Three Massachusetts Democrats voted to raise the debt ceiling — Rep. Stephen Lynch, newly elected Rep. William Keating and Rep. Niki Tsongas.

Both Sen. John Kerry and Sen. Scott Brown are expected to vote in support of raising the debt ceiling when the Senate takes up the plan Tuesday.