Rival plans ensnarl Congress over debt ceiling

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rival Democratic and Republican plans to raise the government’s borrowing ability have thrust Congress into a standoff just one week away from a potentially devastating debt crisis. President Barack Obama made a last ditch call for compromise, but House Speaker John Boehner said negotiations with the White House had been futile. “We can’t allow the American people to become collateral damage to Washington’s political warfare,” Obama declared Monday in a prime-time address to the nation.