Thread: House set for vote on withdrawal

House to vote today on Iraq pullout

By ANNE FLAHERTY, Associated Press Writer

The House has scheduled a vote today on a bill that would require U.S. troops to begin pulling out of Iraq by Oct. 1. Democratic leaders predict they will have enough votes to pass the legislation and send it on to President Bush for his promised veto.

Several House members said they would go along with the bill negotiated with the Senate in a bid for party unity despite their desire for an earlier, binding withdrawal date.

The House vote scheduled Wednesday would come as the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, and other defense officials try to convince lawmakers that a timetable would push Iraq into chaos. Bush's promise guarantees a showdown with Democrats emboldened by last year's election, which handed them control of Congress.

"For the first time, the president will have to be accountable for this war in Iraq," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., said Tuesday. "And he does not want to face that reality."

The $124.2 billion bill would fund, among other things, the war in Iraq but trigger the withdrawal of troops beginning this fall. It sets a nonbinding goal of completing the pullout by April 1, 2008.

Troops could remain in Iraq after the 2008 date but only for limited non-combat missions, including counterterrorism operations and training Iraqi forces.

The bill, already negotiated with Senate leaders, is expected to reach the president's desk as early as next week following a final Senate vote Thursday.

Democrats view the November elections that allowed them to take control of the House and the Senate as a referendum on Bush's conduct of the war. Bush, however, says he stands firm on his latest strategy for winning the war and dismisses as counterproductive the Democratic call for withdrawal.

"That means our commanders in the middle of a combat zone would have to take fighting directions from legislators 6,000 miles away on Capitol Hill," Bush told reporters Tuesday. "The result would be a marked advantage for our enemies and a greater danger for our troops."

Whether Democratic leaders had enough votes to pass the bill in the House has been in question. The original House bill included a binding timeline, demanding combat ends by September 2008. Several of the 218 members who approved the bill said they reluctantly agreed to back the binding timeline even though they wanted troops home sooner.

Rep. Rahm Emanuel (news, bio, voting record), D-Ill., chairman of the Democratic caucus, said, "We feel very good about where the caucus is."

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (news, bio, voting record) said Democrats will send Bush the bill with the hope that the president has a change of heart. But, Hoyer added, they don't expect it.

"We are very, very hopeful that the president will sign that bill, will change his mind and come to the recognition that this bill does in fact set off a new policy for our engagement in Iraq," Hoyer said.

Democrats, with their slim margins in the House and Senate, are unlikely to override Bush's veto.

The White House and Democrats traded insults Tuesday. Vice President Dick Cheney accused Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (news, bio, voting record) of pursuing a defeatist strategy in Iraq to win votes at home.

"Some Democratic leaders seem to believe that blind opposition to the new strategy in Iraq is good politics," Cheney told reporters at the Capitol after attending the weekly Republican policy lunch. "Senator Reid himself has said that the war in Iraq will bring his party more seats in the next election."

"It is cynical to declare that the war is lost because you believe it gives you political advantage," Cheney said.

Reid, D-Nev., dismissed Cheney's comments. "I'm not going to get into a name-calling match with the administration's chief attack dog," he told reporters.

I don't ever want to hear another liberal RINO or Dem that supports this bill to tell me how much they support the troops. Here they have a chance to fund the troops and help the vets, but they just had to sneak in a deadline for withdrawal, making the bill DOA and just another useless piece of paper and an incredible waste of time and discussion.

The president has told them and told them that he would veto this, and yet, these arrogant, out-of-touch defeatists are moving forward with it anyways. And for what? Votes.

I'm beginning to see why the Texas legislature meets once every two years and for only six months at a time. This way, they don't have time to discuss retarded bills that are destined to die in the first place.

After the president vetoes this, these losers are going to squak about how they made an effort to fund the troops, but it was the president that let our heroes down. I hope America realizes that that is a bold-faced lie and will vote these traitors out of office for putting our countries security on the line. Of course, I doubt that will happen. The voters need to wake up and pay attention to what these politicians are doing in DC. It is at a point now where they basically aren't accountable for anything. And even worse...they know it.

These are not legislators, they are snakes, as everyday they prove that they speak with a forked tongue.

My best friend since childhood, is being sent over for a fourth time this next Christmas season. Which means I'll have to stop by and make sure that his wife and kids are doing well. The bad thing is that just last thursday he had to take his Mrs to the hospitol for a second stint for her ticker.

This is about what I wrote in a different message on here. Basically how the World sits back and "LAUGHS" at us.
When fighting a WAR...You fight to WIN at all costs.
When did we start TELLING the ENEMY when we are going to QUIT??? I listen to Rush Limbaugh, and he coined a phrase that is so fitting for this countries ledership...."THEY OWN SURRENDER"
It started in Korea, then Vietnam...The Politicians are attempting to fight a War, and COMMON SENSE tells anyone...THATS JUST STUPID!
Tell me if this makes sense to any of you:
Accountants deal with financial problems-Doctors deal with health issues-Electricians deal with wiring/power issues-Generals deal with WINNING wars-Lawyers deal with legal issues...
BUT when a Lawyer becomes a Politician, things CHANGE.
Common Sense goes out the window,they start to think they are ACCOUNTANTS,DOCTORS and GENERALS...
And you slowly sit back and watch as the foundation of YOUR country disappears. Think about this, and see if I'm close on my assumption.
GOD BLESS AMERICA
GOD BLESS ALL TRUE AMERICANS

Again the Dems prove that there is no battle they will not run from unless it involves murdering unborn children who can't fight back.