Minnesota Lawmakers Stake Out Positions On Debt Deal

ST. PAUL  (AP) - Minnesota's members of Congress are preparing for a key vote on a deficit-reduction deal after a months-long standoff over the nation's debt limit.

Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar said Monday that she will vote yes and expects the agreement to pass the Senate.

Klobuchar says it's time for a breakthrough to prevent a default that would hurt consumers by raising interest rates. She says the deal also will reduce the deficit.

In the House, a spokesman for GOP Rep. Chip Cravaack says he's still undecided, while Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann says she will vote against the proposal.

A Friday vote on an earlier plan to lift the borrowing limit split Minnesota's Republicans, with Cravaack and Bachmann voting no and Reps. John Kline and Erik Paulsen voting yes.

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