House Passes Anti-War Bill

AP via SFGate ^ | 11/14/7 | ANNE FLAHERTY, Associated Press Writer

[SmithL]

House Democrats pushed through a $50 billion bill for the Iraq war Wednesday night that would require President Bush to start bringing troops home in coming weeks with a goal of ending combat by December 2008.

The legislation, passed 218-203, was largely a symbolic jab at Bush, who already has begun reducing force levels but opposes a congressionally mandated timetable on the war. And while the measure was unlikely to pass in the Senate — let alone overcome a presidential veto — Democrats said they wanted voters to know they weren't giving up.

"The fact is, we can no longer sustain the military deployment in Iraq," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. "Staying there in the manner that we are there is no longer an option."

The White House pledged to veto the bill, and Republicans said they would back the president.

"In addition to infringing upon the president's constitutional authority as commander in chief, the bill would mandate a precipitous withdrawal of troops that could increase the probability that American troops would have to one day return to Iraq to confront an even more dangerous enemy," an administration statement said.

The bill represents about a quarter of the $196 billion Bush requested for combat operations in the 2008 budget year, which began Oct 1.

It would compel an unspecified number of troops to leave Iraq within 30 days, a requirement Bush is already on track to meet as he begins in coming weeks to reverse the 30,000 troop buildup he ordered earlier this year. It also sets a goal of ending combat by Dec. 15, 2008, and states that money included in the bill should be used to redeploy troops and "not to extend or prolong the war."

The measure also would set government-wide standards on interrogation,...

[mkjessup]

Why hasn't some Republican with some cajones stepped up and called this what it really is?

'The Nancy Pelosi al Qaeda Relief Act of 2007'

[mkjessup]

That does fit his philosophy better- not one dime for this illegal war.
This war is not illegal. If Ron Paul believes it's illegal, then I have to question why he voted for the 2001 autorization, which was broader, and which he admitted did not target a specific nation and was not a declaration of war. Anyone who votes to cut funding for troops while they're in the war zone is providing aid and comfort to the enemy. Ron Paul should be deported immediately just as Lincoln deported a Copperhead Congresscritter during the Civil War.

You, meanwhile, should take your bong and head over to DU. As you go, you may consider this message from our great founder:

"Ron Paul and his flaming antiwar spam monkeys can Kiss my Ass!!"
-- Jim Robinson, 09/30/07

HEAR HEAR!
I second those sentiments!

Well said Mr. Silverback, and thank you Jim! :)

[XR7]

TRUTH IN HEADLINES

House Passes Anti-War Pro-Terrorism Bill

[Earthdweller]

This is a dog-and-pony show for the MoveOns and the CodePinks.

Exactly. As long as the media keep denying the progress in Iraq and the sheeple don't find out for themselves, the Dems can continue to chip away at the role of the CIC of the US and our Constitution.

Our politicians need to wakeup about what is really happening in this country. The new age of Anti-Americanism is actually the new age of "imaging there is no country" and it is a world wide effort.

[Raycpa]

I love the headline. Who isn’t anti-war?

[Earthdweller]

I used to be shocked at the stupidity of the democrat party but not anymore, they are delusional beyond belief and they simply cannot see the bitter reality of their utter defeat.

Truth is, their efforts are deliberate, as stupid as they seem to most of us, they are following the path the have chosen with lockstep precision. I'm done trying to understand or defend their actions because they are "one of us". Its time to fight the b@stards with all of our arsenal!

[freema]

http://www.reflector.com/local/content/news/stories/2007/11/1113vetsday.html

In a ceremony concluding the day's observance, a representative from the office of U.S. Rep. Walter B. Jones, R-N.C., presented an American flag to the family of a Pitt County man killed earlier this year in Iraq.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Greg Sutton, 38, was killed in June by a roadside bomb. His name will be added to the monument on the Town Common.

[moose2004]

218 votes for surrender, how many deals did Pelosi have to swing to reach that number? Anyway, this anemic effort (in libs’ eyes) won’t satisfy the brown shirts at moveon and code pink.

[gov_bean_ counter]

run like hell after a few unaimed rounds.

AKA, Shoot and scoot.

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

"The fact is, we can no longer sustain the military deployment in Iraq," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. "Staying there in the manner that we are there is no longer an option."

Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory...

[jveritas]

Traitors are never one of us, I really have had no problem saying that they are traitors right from the beginning and I have never felt guilty about saying it and never will.

[Sender]

1. Sun Tzu said: In the operations of war, where there are in the field a thousand swift chariots, as many heavy chariots, and a hundred thousand mail-clad soldiers, with provisions enough to carry them a thousand li, the expenditure at home and at the front, including entertainment of guests, small items such as glue and paint, and sums spent on chariots and armor, will reach the total of a thousand ounces of silver per day. Such is the cost of raising an army of 100,000 men.

2. When you engage in actual fighting, if victory is long in coming, then men's weapons will grow dull and their ardor will be damped. If you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength.

3. Again, if the campaign is protracted, the resources of the State will not be equal to the strain.

4. Now, when your weapons are dulled, your ardor damped, your strength exhausted and your treasure spent, other chieftains will spring up to take advantage of your extremity. Then no man, however wise, will be able to avert the consequences that must ensue.

Sun Tzu even foresaw the Democrats.

[silent_jonny]

I hate to say it, but Perino’s tougher than Tony Snow on a good day.

I tend to agree.

Nothing against Tony, but Dana has a no-bull style that I prefer.

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

If there’s anything Heath Shuler knows inside and out, it’s defeat.

[reefdiver]

only a group of @ssholes wd want to grad defeat from the jaws of victory. They must really hate America and us

[IrishMike]

The dems have lost their,quagmire,defeat,retreat,slow bleed strategy.
..................................................
On the contrary, W has imposed a slow bleed strategy on the stuck in a quagmire congressional dRAT’s.

[kabar]

Kucinich voted No as well. John Lewis voted Present. I am sure they believe that the bill didn’t go far enough.

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

not one dime for this illegal war.

Do you honestly think you're fooling anyone with your 2007 sign-up, your Code Pinko talking points and your faux right-winger tagline? Seriously, man. Try harder.

[sono]

[COBOL2Java]

Suggested text of Bush's remarks, to be delivered in a speech today:

"I have a little civics lesson for the Democrat Leadership in the House of Representatives: you don't get to pick the withdrawal date of the troops, I do. And in making that decision, I will go by the judgement of the military commmanders in the field, not the politicians in Washington DC."