President Obama warned leaders in Congress that he wouldn't tolerate another "self-inflicted political crisis" associated with the need to raise the nation's debt limit.

Over lunch Wednesday at the White House, Obama cautioned House Speaker John Boehner, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell against another standoff that plagued Washington last summer.

“We're not going to recreate the debt ceiling debacle of last August,” Press Secretary Jay Carney recounted the president saying during his lunch meeting with House and Senate leaders.

Boehner’s office released its own account of the meeting shortly after Carney began the White House daily briefing, saying that the House speaker had asked the president whether he would aim for a debt limit increase that didn’t include any spending cuts, to which the president responded, “Yes.”

According to Boehner’s office, the speaker responded, "As long as I'm around here, I'm not going to allow a debt ceiling increase without doing something serious about the debt."

Carney said Boehner asked whether the president was advocating “the clean debt ceiling,” which Carney argued was “a little different” than asking whether or not it would include spending cuts.

But, Carney continued, “The essence is the same. And the president's point was, we should not hold the full faith and credit of the United States hostage to one party's political agenda.”

Obama and the four leaders in Congress dined on hoagies fetched earlier in the day by the president during a stop at Washington's Taylor Gourmet sandwich shop.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL -- Mitt Romney continued to drive a debt-oriented message here on Wednesday morning, extending his "prairie fire" of debt metaphor with the assistance of a prop.

In a nod to the independent voters who pushed the Sunshine State into the Democratic column in 2008, Romney noted that both parties were responsible for pushing the debt to the "incomprehensible" levels – which were represented on a giant prop debt clock behind him.

Mary Altaffer / AP

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks at a campaign stop May 16 in St. Petersburg, Fla.

"There was another area during [President Obama's] campaign, he said he would focus on. You see, he was very critical of his predecessor for the debts his predecessor put in place. And sure it's true you can't blame one party or the other for all the debts this country has, because both parties in my opinion have spent too much and borrowed too much when they were in power," Romney said in this key swing state.

(Interestingly, Romney danced around the actual name of that predecessor, George W. Bush, who on Tuesday endorsed the former Massachusetts Governor when asked a question by an ABC News reporter.)

"[President Obama] was very critical of his predecessor because the predecessor put together $4 trillion of debt over eight years," Romney continued. "This president however - oh by the way, he said that doing that was unpatriotic, irresponsible and unpatriotic. And he said he would cut the debt in half if he became president. Instead he doubled it, alright, he doubled it."

Democrats answered those charges quickly.

“In Florida today, Mitt Romney continued to make dishonest claims- both about President Obama’s record and his own," Obama spokesperson Lis Smith said in a statement. “While President Obama has put forward a plan to reduce the deficit by more than $4 trillion by making responsible spending cuts and asking every American to pay their share, Mitt Romney refuses to say what spending cuts or tax increases he’d make to cover the cost of giving $5 trillion in tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans. Mitt Romney simply wants to return to the same policies that caused the economic crisis and weakened the middle class."

Meanwhile, Romney used his prop clock like a battering ram against the president.

"Gosh, when we put that clock up, we made that clock back in the New Hampshire primary days and it began with 14 back then. Now its fifteen, six eighty five, it'll be sixteen coming soon. It is not at all what he promised," Romney said. "This presidency has been a disappointment, and the people who have been hurt by this disappointment are the American people."

The presumptive Republican nominee did not mention his plan to reform entitlements here in senior-heavy Florida, but repeat his plans to increase military spending -- a portion of Romney's fiscal vision not easily squared with his plans to cut spending broadly.

"I'd like to take shipbuilding from 9 to 15 a year, by the way that will help put people to work. And I want to buy more aircraft and I want to have more active duty personnel and I want to make sure we give our veterans the care they richly deserve," Romney said.

The House voted Wednesday largely along party lines to voice their opposition to further raising the debt ceiling, a symbolic gesture in response to President Obama's formal request for $1.2 trillion in increased borrowing authority.

Lawmakers passed what is known as a "Resolution of Disapproval" meant to register their dissatisfaction with the president's most recent request for an increase in the debt ceiling. The request -- along with today's symbolic vote -- were both established in last summer's deal on the debt ceiling and spending reduction.

The bill passed 239-179 with overwhelming Republican support, along with the votes of six Democrats. One GOP lawmaker voted against the bill. along with 175 House Democrats.

The motion is expected to fail in in the Senate, however, making today's vote little more than an effort for members of Congress to register their opposition to another tranche of borrowing (while avoiding having to risk any fiscal or financial fallout as a result). Even if the Senate were to approve this motion, Obama could veto the resolution, meaning each House would have to muster even stronger margins to overcome the president's veto.

Nonetheless, Wednesday's vote was designed as part of the debt limit deal struck last August, in order to give Republicans the chance to go on record against the debt limit increases that that bill authorized.

The Obama administration had indicated that it had intended to request the new wave of borrowing earlier in January, but it pushed back its request in response to congressional leaders who had wanted the opportunity to register their formal opposition.

Last week, Obama requested the third of three debt limit increases allowed to him under the bill. The $1.2 trillion dollar increase is expected to take the country through the end of this year.

House Democrats, who overwhelmingly voted against the measure, consider the vote another example of Republicans taking the nation’s economy to "the precipice" of default.

"The reason why the Republicans are bringing this up is a face-saver for their hardlined people who make the wrong association between national debt and paying what you already owe," Rep. John Larson (D-CT) told reporters today. "That's why we believe this is a fraudulent issue, a totally manufactured issue with respect to the debt ceiling."

President Obama formally notified lawmakers on Thursday that he is requesting an increase in the nation's debt limit, making his request official in a letter to Congress.

“I hereby certify that the debt subject to limit is within $100,000,000,000 of the limit in 31 U.S.C. 3101(b) and that further borrowing is required to meet existing commitments,” wrote President Obama.

His request came after delaying a formal notification a few weeks ago at the request of leaders in Congress, who had wished to have an opportunity for members to vote on the request.

Congress doesn’t have to do anything for the increase in the debt limit. The Budget Control Act, the law which settled last summer’s acrimonious debt ceiling debate, provided for this increase without congressional approval. However, the law states that when the president sends the letter requesting the authorization, opens a 15-day window in which both legislative bodies have a chance to vote on a resolution of disapproval that could block the request.

If both the House and Senate disapprove of the debt limit increase, then the country would not be allowed to borrow more money. This is unlikely to happen, but it gives the Republican-controlled House the opportunity to publicly register its disagreement with the increase. Most likely, the debt limit will be raised to $16.4 trillion on Jan. 27.

House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-OH) office was quick to respond to the letter: “Washington’s mounting debt is a drag on our economic recovery, and this request is another reminder that the President has consistently punted on the tough choices needed to rein in the deficit and protect important programs for American seniors from going bankrupt.” 

Currently, the country is already over its $15.2 trillion limit but the Treasury has taken steps to make sure the U.S. doesn’t default on its loans.   The Treasury Department believes there will be no reason to raise the limit again until after the 2012 elections.

If the bipartisan Congressional committee tasked with reducing long-term federal debt does not agree on a deal by Thanksgiving, it will trigger trillions of dollars in across the board cuts, but the committee is finding it difficult to agree on taxes and entitlements. NBC’s Luke Russert reports.