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Senate defeat of competing Democratic and Republican plans to extend a cut in the Social Security payroll tax has punted the issue to the House, where GOP leaders are facing ideological divisions within the party over whether to pass the tax holiday.

The focus is on the GOP-controlled House after Senate votes Thursday exposed wide reluctance by Republicans to go along with the costly proposal _ a centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s jobs agenda.

As expected, Senate Republicans defeated Obama’s plan to extend the payroll tax cut through the end of next year while also making it more generous for workers.

But in a vote that exposed rare divisions among Senate Republicans, more than two dozen of the GOP’s 47 lawmakers also voted to kill an alternative plan backed by their leader, Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to renew an existing 2 percentage point payroll tax cut.

A spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Republicans weren’t planning on negotiating with Democrats before unveiling a payroll tax cut plan _ and the spending cuts to pay for it _ next week. But the Senate vote would seem to indicate that House Republicans will be hard-pressed to muscle a payroll tax cut through without Democratic support. And those votes could be hard to come by if the GOP plan contains spending cuts Democrats dislike.

Many Republicans and even some Democrats say the payroll tax cut hasn’t worked to boost jobs and is too costly with the deficit requiring the government to borrow 36 cents of every dollar it spends.

“I can’t find many people who even know that they’re getting it, OK?” said Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., who opposed both plans. “So with that being said, we’re going to double down on something that we thought should have worked that didn’t work.”

Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., said after Thursday night’s vote that previous tax rebates “stimulated little and increased the debt a lot” and that it would be better to simply cut spending than turn around and use spending cuts on stimulus-style tax cuts.

The defeat of the competing Senate plans came as Boehner said for the first time that renewing the payroll tax cut would boost the lagging economy. Boehner also promised compromise on a renewal of long-term jobless benefits through the end of 2012.

The payroll tax cuts and unemployment benefits are at the center of a costly, politically-charged year-end agenda in which Democrats seem poised to prevail in renewing a tax cut that many Republicans back only reluctantly no faxing payday loans. But Republicans are insisting _ in a switch from last year _ that the payroll tax cut and jobless benefits be paid for by cutting spending.

Both parties are seeking the political high ground as next year’s elections loom, with Democrats accusing Republicans of siding with the rich, and Republicans countering that Democrats were taxing small business owners who create jobs.

The first payroll tax plan to fall was a Democratic measure that was at the heart of the jobs package Obama announced in September. It would cut the Social Security payroll tax from 6.2 percent to 3.1 percent next year and also extend the cut to employers, with its hefty $265 billion cost paid for by slapping a 3.25 percent surtax on income exceeding $1 million.

Republicans and a handful of Democrats combined to kill the measure on a 51-49 tally that fell well short of the 60 votes required under Senate rules. For the first time, a Republican, Susan Collins of Maine, voted to support the millionaires’ surcharge.

In a surprising result, Democrats and more than two dozen Republicans then voted 78-20 to kill the $120 billion GOP alternative that would have simply extended the existing 2 percentage point payroll tax cut, financed by freezing federal workers’ pay through 2015 and reducing the government bureaucracy.

Republicans offered a simple one-year continuation of the existing law, jettisoning Obama’s call to deepen the cut to 3.1 percentage point on workers’ first $106,800 in earnings, while expanding it to cut in half employers’ Social Security contributions for their $5 million in payroll.

To pay for the measure, Senate Republicans proposed freezing federal workers’ pay through 2015 _ extending a two-year-freeze recommended by Obama _ and reducing the bureaucracy by 200,000 jobs through attrition.

The Democratic plan would give a worker earning $50,000 a more than $1,500 tax cut; the GOP plan would provide a $1,000 tax cut for such an earner. A two-income family making $200,000 would reap a $6,000-plus tax cut under the Democratic plan and a $4,000 tax cut under the GOP version.

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The newspaper coverage was troubling: London’s huge international showcase was beset by planning problems, local opposition and labor woes _ and the transport was a mess.

It sounds like the 2012 Olympics, but this was the Great Exhibition of 1851 generating stories of late trains, unscrupulous landlords and dangerous overcrowding.

Coverage of the event is found in 4 million pages of newspapers from the 18th and 19th centuries being made available online Tuesday by the British Library, in what head of newspapers Ed King calls “a digital Aladdin’s Cave” for researchers.

The online archive is a partnership between the library and digital publishing firm Brightsolid, which has been scanning 8,000 pages a day from the library’s vast periodical archive for the past year and plans to digitize 40 million pages over the next decade.

A glance at the stories of crime and scandal shows some things haven’t changed _ including grumbling letter-writers complaining about disruption caused by the 1851 exhibition, held inside a specially built Crystal Palace in London’s Hyde Park.

“People were saying, ‘This isn’t good, I can’t ride my horse in Hyde Park,’” said King. One regional newspaper editor complained that the “celebrated p.m. fast train service to London” arrived two hours late and warned visitors “not to trust themselves to the tender mercies of the numerous private housekeepers” renting out rooms at exorbitant prices.

The library hopes the searchable online trove will be a major resource for academics and researchers. The vast majority of the British Library’s 750 million pages of newspapers _ the largest collection in the world _ are currently available only on microfilm or bound in bulky volumes at a newspaper archive in north London, where the yellowing journals cover 20 miles (32 kilometers) of shelves.

“We’ve got 200 years of newspapers locked away,” King said. “We’re trying to open it up to a wider audience.”

There will be a cost to download articles online, though they can be accessed for free at the library’s London reading rooms.

Most of the first batch of 4 million pages are from the 19th century, and include stories about huge international events, freak accidents and local crimes, as well as articles about Victorian celebrities such as Florence Nightingale, whose nursing of troops in the Crimean War made her famous.

There are stories of war and famine, crime and punishment, alongside birth and death notices, family announcements and advertisements for soap, cocoa, marmalade, miracle cures and treatments for baldness.

Crime columns provide a glimpse at rough 19th-century justice. Newspapers printed lists of people transported to Australia for stealing money, silver, cloth, hay and, in one case, “seven cups and five saucers.”

The archive includes national and regional newspapers from Britain and Ireland, as well as more specialized publications. The Cheltenham Looker-On reported on society, fashions and gossip in the genteel English spa town. The Poor Law Unions’ Gazette contained vivid accounts of workhouse life, and descriptions of inmates who had absconded.

King said the library hopes the archive will also help amateur genealogists find information about their ancestors.

Library staff have already highlighted a few links to the famous, including an 1852 appearance in insolvency court by Simon Cowell’s great-great-great grandfather, Michael Gashion, and a local newspaper item about the great-great grandfather of actress Kate Winslet, who was “embedded in a mass of bricks and timber” when a hotel facade fell on him in 1903.

Bob Satchwell of press trade group the Society of Editors welcomed the archive _ some good news for newspapers amid all the negative press from Britain’s ongoing phone hacking scandal.

He said the website “opens up a magical new window on a magnificent treasure trove of real history, recording the lives of ordinary people doing extraordinary things in vibrant communities, rather than merely the cold facts of politics and pestilence.”

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Concordia honored

ROME

Prime Minister-designate Mario Monti of Italy says he is ready to present his new government to the president on Wednesday after winning wide backing from political, business and union leaders.

Monti expressed his “serenity” and “conviction” in Italy’s ability to overcome the difficult phase of its economic crisis. He told reporters Tuesday evening that he had received assurances from various parties that they would endure sacrifices for the greater good of the country.

The economics professor tapped to head Italy’s next government has been holding intense talks for two days, seeking support for his mission to steer the eurozone’s third-largest economy through its debt crisis.

Monti’s government must then win confidence votes in both houses of Parliament, expected later this week.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

ROME (AP) _ Italy’s prime minister-designate is ready to present his new government on Wednesday after winning wide backing from political, business and union leaders for his Cabinet and economic reforms during intense consultations aimed at steering the euro zone’s third-largest economy through its debt crisis.

Italian news reports said Monti would present details of his government on Wednesday morning. Monti’s government must then win confidence votes in both houses of Parliament, expected this week.

Monti, a respected economist and former European commissioner, is under pressure to quickly reassure markets that Italy will avoid a default that could tear apart the 17 countries that use the euro currency and push the global economy back into recession.

Monti, 68, has already shown his determination to press through deep reforms by making it clear he intends to serve until regularly scheduled elections in 2013, rejecting calls for an early vote.

On Tuesday, after rounds of meetings, Monti garnered support from the center-left Democratic Party, Silvio Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party and the Confindustria, a powerful business lobby.

“We strongly support the birth of this government because for us it is the last chance to regain credibility,” Confindustria leader Emma Marcegaglia said.

Union leader Raffaele Bonanni said Monti was close to completing his Cabinet at the time of their meeting Tuesday afternoon.

“Monti told us that he has reached an agreement with the main political forces that will give him a consistent parliamentary majority that will support him and he will very quickly be in a position to present the list of ministers,” said Bonanni, leader of the powerful CISL union no credit check payday loans.

Despite reports of progress, European markets closed lower Tuesday as investors worried that politicians might pull their support in the future if austerity measures proved unpalatable.

Amid the uncertainty, the yield on Italy’s 10-year bonds jumped again to 6.94 percent. Last week’s spike above 7 percent _ a level considered unsustainable in the long term _ raised fears Italy would eventually need a bailout like Greece, Ireland and Portugal.

But a financial debacle in Italy raises a whole new set of problems, because the country is considered too big for Europe to bail out.

Monti was asked to form a government Sunday after Berlusconi resigned amid weeks of market turmoil over Italy’s stagnant growth and high public debt, which at euro1.9 trillion ($2.6 trillion) is nearly 120 percent of GDP.

Many of those debts are coming due soon, with Italy having to roll over more than euro300 billion ($410 billion) of its debts next year alone.

Monti met Tuesday with the head of the Democratic Party and Angelino Alfano, leader of the Peoples of Freedom party.

“We think, in light of the facts and after this latest conversation, that Professor Monti’s attempts are destined to turn out well,” Alfano told reporters afterward.

Previously, his party had conditioned its support on the shape of Monti’s cabinet, his government agenda and the duration of his term.

Pierluigi Bersani, head of the Democratic Party, pledged support and placed no timeframe on Monti’s tenure.

Only the Northern League, Berlusconi’s allies, have refused to support his government. They wanted early elections this spring, something Monti has rejected.

The EU, meanwhile, says said new measures will be necessary for Italy to balance its budget as promised by 2013. The eurozone avoided contracting in the third quarter, thanks mainly to Germany and France, but is widely expected to fall into recession imminently as a result of its raging debt crisis.

Monti says Italians will have to make some sacrifices to get through the crisis but “not tears and blood.”

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India’s privately owned Kingfisher Airlines was forced to cancel dozens of flights Friday amid a burgeoning crisis at the country’s second-largest carrier.

Kingfisher, which is partly owned by brewery tycoon Vijay Mallya, has canceled more than 120 flights this week as pilots and crew called in sick after their October salaries were delayed.

The airline says flights were canceled because it was reconfiguring planes, the Press Trust of India reported. The Economic Times reported that leasing companies want Kingfisher to return their planes after the company fell behind on payments.

Kingfisher shares slid more than 12 percent on the Mumbai stock market Friday.

India’s airline industry has been hit by rising fuel costs and a crushing price war. Kingfisher is currently struggling under debt of $1.4 billion and shut down its budget carrier in September after it ran up losses payday loan lenders.

The airline, which began operations in 2005, bought India’s first budget airline Deccan Airways in 2008, leading to the creation of its budget wing, Kingfisher Red.

Kingfisher’s problems have worsened after three oil companies stopped giving it jet fuel on credit and asked the airline to make daily payments.

The airline has grounded eight of its leased turboprop ATR aircraft, and returned 14 leased A320 jets, leaving it with fewer aircraft in its fleet.

The cash-strapped airline has also piled up unpaid fees to airport operators and other agencies who are now adding to its financial pressures.

Kingfisher has said it is restructuring its operations.

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The world’s largest brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev NV said Wednesday its third-quarter profits rose by over 16 percent, largely on the back of the continued popularity of global brands like Stella Artois and Beck’s.

Despite a slight overall decrease in overall volume, the Leuven, Belgium-based company reported that its normalized profit attributable to equity holders grew 16.3 percent to $1.73 billion in the quarter compared with last year’s equivalent of $1.49 billion.

It says its revenue grew by 3.6 percent in the third quarter even though volumes decreased by 0.2 percent.

In the United States, it said that the share of Budweiser continued to decline although at a slower pace than previously. However its focus brands Bud Light, Michelob Ultra and Stella continued to grow. Overall in the U.S., the company said volumes continued to be “impacted by weak consumer confidence” and were slightly down.

A-B InBev held out hope that Bud Light would continue to grow, especially in the light of a new contract with the National Football League and the marketing opportunities American football entails.

“There are indications that the brand is starting to benefit from the new NFL sponsorship,” the company said.

Globally, Budweiser last month also extended its sponsorship of the World Cup through the 2018 edition in Russia and the 2022 event in Qatar.

That soccer contract should also pay off in Brazil over the coming years as the nation hosts the 2014 World Cup. And it will be further boosted by the activity and excitement that the 2016 Olympics in Rio will create.

The company also did well in China where Budweiser, Harbin and the regional brand Sedrin have had a combined growth of 13.6 percent in the third quarter. Overall, A-B InBev beer volumes grew by 4.7 percent in China over the third quarter.

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Lee Enterprises, the publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and more than 40 other daily newspapers, swung to a loss in its fourth fiscal quarter as print advertising revenue continued to slump.

The Davenport, Iowa-based Lee reported a loss of $8.8 million, or a loss of 20 cents a share, for the quarter ended Sept. 25 compared to net income of $5.2 million, or a profit of 11 cents a share, a year earlier. Despite a 23 percent increase in digital ad sales, Lee’s operating revenue declined 3.3 percent to $182.4 million.

Excluding noncash charges related to the impairment of goodwill and debt financing costs, Lee would have reported a profit of 20 cents a share in the quarter compared to 16 cents a share a year earlier.

The company also reported that it had not yet finalized a $904 cash advances pay day loan.5 million debt financing agreement that had been tentatively reached.

“We continue to work toward the refinancing of our April 2012 debt maturities, which we announced in September,” Carl Schmidt, Lee’s vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer, said in a written statement.

He said the publisher had met a Monday deadline to preserve its right to file a prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy . In September, Lee said it would consider prepackaged bankruptcy if if it couldn’t get 95 percent of the lenders to agree to the refinancing terms. At the time, Lee said it had 90 percent support.

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Wells Fargo 6,126

Edward Jones 4,965

Citigroup 3,800

U.S. Bancorp 3,750

Bank of America 2,815

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