Ignoring President George W Bush's staunch vow of a veto, the US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a war funding bill that includes a timetable for pulling US troops out of Iraq. Lawmakers paid little heed to the visiting top army general in Iraq, David Petraeus, who during a closed-door session earlier in the day championed the troop "surge" strategy and appealed for time so it could show results. The narrow 218-208 vote by the Democratic-majority House links release of 124 billion dollars in military spending for Iraq and Afghanistan to a schedule for the pullout of American troops, beginning as early as October.
The bill next faces a vote in the Senate, expected on Thursday, when it is likely to be approved. Then it heads to Bush, who has repeatedly vowed to block it. "Tonight, the House of Representatives voted for failure in Iraq," said a statement by White House spokeswoman Dana Perino. "Democrats have forced this process to continue for too long. The president calls on the Senate to quickly pass this legislation so the president can veto it."
Bush would then "work with the Congressional leadership on a clean bill that funds our troops while respecting the judgment of our military commanders and helping ensure the safety of the American people," Perino said.
Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi played up the thousands of casualties endured by US troops and the "scores of thousands" of Iraqi lives lost in the war, which she added would "cost well over a trillion dollars if it ended today."
"The sacrifices borne by our troops and their families demand more than the blank checks the president is asking for, for a war without end," she said. She urged Bush "to sign the bill so that we can focus on winning the war against terrorism, which is the real threat to the American people."
Democrats were also boosted by the release of a poll that showed a majority of Americans side with them on the issue and believe victory in Iraq is no longer possible. According to the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 56 percent said they agreed with setting a deadline for troop withdrawal, while 37 percent sided with Bush in opposing the move.
The bill provides more cash than the administration sought to bankroll operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, but says US troops are to start withdrawing from Iraq in October, with a non-binding target of completing the pullout by March 31.
Petraeus urged lawmakers to withhold judgment on the latest US drive for success in Iraq despite a spike in violence including in Diyala on Monday where nine US troops were killed. He spoke of nearly "breathtaking" progress in parts of Iraq since the US military began its "surge" of troops to secure the country. "We are ahead, I think, with respect ... to the reduction of sectarian murders in Baghdad," he told reporters, after meeting with representatives and senators in Congress. "Progress in Anbar is almost something that's breathtaking," he added, referring to the western Sunni province hit hard by a violent insurgency.
Republican Duncan Hunter, ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, said Petraeus "reminded us... this is a test of wills."
Ahead of the promised presidential veto both sides are scrambling to squeeze the maximum political mileage out of the debate. Vice President Dick Cheney said Tuesday that "timetable legislation ... would guarantee defeat" and blasted Democratic Senate majority leader Harry Reid for "defeatism" after Reid said the war in Iraq was "lost."
Hunter urged Reid to resign over the controversial comments, saying lawmakers should give the Iraq reinforcement plan time to show results.
No one doubts that Congress will disburse the funds the Pentagon is requesting -- but on terms that remain very much up in the air. The Democrats could release funds one small piece at a time to keep the Iraq debate centre-stage, or impose targets forcing the administration to justify its claims of progress.