Booman Tribune ~ A Progressive Community

Bringing the Troops Home

by BooMan
Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 05:52:30 PM EST

I am just going from what I observed on C-SPAN2 and not any official tally, but it appears that Republicans Gordon Smith (OR) and Chuck Hagel (NE) voted against Thad Cochran's amendment to strip troop withdrawals from the Iraq War Supplemental Bill. Lieberman and Mark Pryor (AR) voted for the amendment and Tim Jonhson and someone else did not vote. The amendment failed 48-50. This means that the troop withdrawals will remain in the bill.

Update [2007-3-27 18:0:20 by BooMan]: Here is something remarkable. Senator Michael Enzi of Wyoming did not vote. He's up for re-election and I guess he didn't want to stand by his buddy Dick Cheney. What a slap in the face.

After the vote Majority Leader Reid made some brief remarks. He said that the bill was 'a mess' and that he had to sit down with Minority Leader McConnell and figure out where they were going from here. He said that he had received over 100 proposed amendments and that his staff would be up all night figuring out which ones were germane. He said that they would have a vote on cloture in the morning.

It's impossible, based on that information, for me to predict what will happen. It's possible that there will be some amendment introduced that will weaken the House bill in some catastrophic way. But, right now it looks like a better than 50% bet that the Congress is going to pass a supplemental bill calling for the beginning of withdrawal of troops in Iraq within 120 days.

I have to double check the language of the bill on that because, even though that is how C-SPAN is describing the bill, I remember that the President can buy another 120 days by certifying that the Iraqi government is meeting their benchmarks. Either way, if this passes, it is an acknowledgment that the war is lost.

The President has said he will veto this bill. It's hard to see how he wins by doing so. If he wants to play chicken with Congress, I think he will lose.

A tip of the hat to Senators Smith and Hagel for making this possible. And it would not have been possible without our victories in Virginia, Montana, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Rhode Island. We needed every last vote.

Bringing the Troops Home | 10 comments (10 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: Bringing the Troops Home (4.00 / 2)

If Bush does veto this, Congress should pass the same legislation every two weeks. Make Bush veto the bill over and over and see how his support falls even further into the gutter.

I'd rather own books that I don't read than clothes I don't wear." -- Jonathan Safran Foer

by mlr701 (mlr701atgmaildotcom) on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 06:26:50 PM EST

Re: Bringing the Troops Home (none / 1)

voting against this bill is a double whammy. You voted against funding the troops and you voted against ending the war. No wonder Republicans are not going to filibuster it.

by BooMan on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 06:32:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Bringing the Troops Home (none / 1)

Maybe, but I heard this idea, and I like it better if they can pull it off: pass the current bill and send it to Chimpy with a strong message that this is the best bill he is going to get. There's time to pass a couple more versions before the April 15th funding deadline, and make sure His Nibs knows unequivocably that if he vetos this, he's going to like the next bill even less.

But either way, hold his feet to the fire. Make sure he either signs the supplemental, or that we explain to the American people that The Deciderer was for funding the troops before he was against it.

I for one welcome our new Twitter overlords. @Omir55

by Omir the Storyteller (omir.the.storyteller -CAT- gmail -DOG- com) on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 06:36:20 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Bringing the Troops Home (none / 0)

Yes, Omir, the best bill he's going to get.

The Sibyl of Cumae came disguised as a crone to the court of Tarquin the Proud, and offered him nine scrolls of Sibylline Prophesy for a princely sum. He laughed in her face, saying she was mad. The Sibyl called for a brazier, ostensibly to warm her knurled, old hands, and proceeded to burn one third of the scrolls, offering him six at the same price. Tarquin raved that this proved she was mad, whereupon she burnt half of those remaining. Tarquin bought the last three scrolls for the original asking price.

If Bush vetoes this bill, he should get another he likes even less.

"No one has the right to say `You do what I tell you, or I'll hurt you.'" - Monty Roberts

by susanw on Wed Mar 28th, 2007 at 08:59:00 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Bringing the Troops Home (none / 0)

I think that would lead to a Repuke filibuster.

by dataguy on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 07:49:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Bringing the Troops Home (none / 1)

That's OK. Every minute they filibuster is another minute we can hammer home that they are not allowing a budget to fund the troops to pass. In fact if I was Reid I would keep the Senate in session 24/7 as long as they wanted to wear themselves out, and all the while I'd be getting the message out that they were more interested in grandstanding than funding the troops.

I may be wrong (it happens a lot) but I think this is one battle they can't win.

I for one welcome our new Twitter overlords. @Omir55

by Omir the Storyteller (omir.the.storyteller -CAT- gmail -DOG- com) on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 11:46:15 PM EST
[ Parent ]

The War is Lost? (none / 1)

I baffled by what this means in the same way that I am baffled by George Bush's assertions that we must be victorious.

What exactly is it that "the war" is lost, like a basketball game is lost?

The soldiers, their families, and the American people have lost much. The Iraqi people have lost incalculably more. We have lost billions of dollars.

But what does it mean that the war "is lost"? When victory is undefined, what does loss mean?

50 states, 210 media market, 435 Congressional Districts, 3080 counties, 192,480 precincts

by TarheelDem on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 07:23:05 PM EST

Re: Bringing the Troops Home (none / 1)

when does it become appropriate for the unwashed to stand up and point out the simple fact that the two phony liberal republican senators from the great state of Maine don't deserve to be supported in any way at all. And, whichever one is up for re-election in 08 should be informed that she will be publicly challenged at every single campaign stop that she makes.
I guess what I am leading up to is the simple fact that any elected representative of the people that continues to support the garbage that is leading this country should be actively driven from office as soon as possible.
What the hell are we waiting for. Does a Hagel or a G Smith have to lead the way?
Why are the Democrats that have won control of both houses afraid to force the god-damned liar that is now running the Justice Dept. do just resign. Force his ass out of a job. They have the proof. Use it!
or lose it. billjpa

by billjpa (billjpa@aol.com) on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 07:33:34 PM EST

April 6 2007 4 AM Tehran time (none / 1)

http://www3.whdh.com:80/news/articles/world/BO46645/

http://www3.whdh.com:80/news/articles/world/BO46994/

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200...19435610510.htm

http://www.pakistantimes.net/2007/03/23/top13.htm

http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,129781,00.html

http://news.gc.ca/cfmx/view/en/index.jsp?a...=News+Releases&

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&newwindo...&ncl=1114687870

http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/i...I24318020070322

http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/newsroom/view...s_e.asp?id=2226

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_5510248

by Lasthorseman (Lasthorseman@comcast.net) on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 07:43:56 PM EST

Enzi (none / 1)

FWIW, NYT says "One Republican, Senator Mike Enzi of Wyoming, was absent because of a family illness."

by adam b (throwingthingsblog -at- hotmail.com) on Tue Mar 27th, 2007 at 11:37:10 PM EST

Bringing the Troops Home | 10 comments (10 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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