A previous deal, imposing a tougher repayment regime, was rejected in a March 2010 referendum by 93% of voters.
Having resisted for months the idea of a bailout, the Portuguese authorities are now counting on at least some of the rescue money to be delivered by June -- before the election and ahead of tough debt repayment obligations that month.
"Congressional spending directives to the president contain an implicit condition that, if the money just isn't there to be spent, the president must make tough choices — prioritizing repayment of bondholders who have lent money to our country over those who have been promised payment under various sorts of entitlements, politically painful though that would be".
If the job market is pitiless as ever, making repayments tough or impossible, you'll need to head into the local branch for a chat.
Ms Dunn added: "If grants are cut, it could mean the cost of student loans will go up for everyone or repayment conditions will get tougher than they already are.
Democrats praise Mr. Obama for increasing and expanding federal financial aid, establishing the supremacy of federal direct loans while pushing aside what he has called middleman lenders and banks, keeping interest rates on loans low, restructuring repayments and taking a tough regulatory stance on for-profit colleges.
They have chipped away at Medicaid rates paid to physicians and providers, curbed eligibility for state health services in tough budget years, and cut financing for loan repayment and medical education for fledgling doctors.
Any sort of downturn could make repayment of those junk bonds awfully tough.
Facing a tough financial situation and with last year's default on international debt repayment fresh in the mind, the Government is under increasing pressure to extend oil exploration and extraction.
When times got tough for a client, he would cut them some slack on the repayment schedule -- and that kindness, far from being a bad business strategy, helped him keep the bank alive when his clients were panicked and desperate in the tough times.
