U.S. ‘shouldn’t even get close to’ debt default: Boehner

House Speaker John Boehner on Thursday said the United States should avoid a major fight over raising the federal debt ceiling that brings the United States close to a default. After passage of a $1.1 trillion spending bill, the only major fiscal hurdle facing Congress over the next nine months is an increase in the $17 trillion debt ceiling that is expected to be needed in as little as six weeks. Boehner told a news conference that the United States should not default on its debt and "shouldn't even get close to it." He did not say whether Republicans would tie an increase in the debt ceiling to demands for additional deficit reduction. Speaking to reporters at his weekly press conference, Boehner was asked whether he would engage in direct negotiations with President Barack Obama on a new deficit-reduction package as part of the effort to increase the debt limit.