Good sense may be a rare commodity in Washington these days. But lawmakers have finally recognized they were flirting with mutually assured destruction. Now, thankfully, they have downgraded the nation’s debt threat to DEFCON 3. The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a Republican motion to raise the nation’s borrowing limit for four months. The move implies the GOP will now try to cut the deficit by threatening to shut down the government instead. It’s less messy and might just work.