A hamburger today for $2.4 trillion tomorrow

Classic bourgeois, good for thee but not for me.

President Obama took his debt team out for burgers at Good Stuff Eatery on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, giving new meaning to the "Popeye" character Wimpy's catchphrase "I'd gladly pay you Tuesday, for a hamburger today."

The White House said the outing, at which the president consumed a meal of about 1,700 calories, was a reward for the debt team's "nonstop" work over the last few months as they worked out a deal with Capitol Hill to extend the government's borrowing limit. Mr. Obama signed the extension into law Tuesday, just ahead of the deadline, allowing up to $2.4 trillion in debt to be accumulated.

Good Stuff marks the latest stop in Mr. Obama's Hamburger Diplomacy in and around Washington.