 It was adopted by a Republican majority in the House of Representatives, but both the presidency and the Senate were controlled by Democrats, who strongly opposed the bill.Furthermore, because the bill made an increase in the debt ceiling contingent on the passage of a constitutional amendment, the bill would, in practice, have needed the support of two-thirds of each house of Congress in order to be effective.When the bill arrived on the floor of the Senate, Democrat and Majority Leader Harry Reid called the proposal "one of the worst pieces of legislation to ever be placed on the floor of the United States Senate."