House, Bush square off on troops pullout

House and Senate leaders said their bills reflect the mandate of the American voters.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush called it "political theater," an "abdication of responsibilities" by the Democrats. But for Nancy Pelosi, House passage of legislation ordering troops home from Iraq next year was sweet victory.
"Proudly, this new Congress voted to bring an end to the war in Iraq," the speaker declared after Friday's vote.
The 218-212 vote, mostly along party lines, was a hard-fought win for Democrats, who faced divisions within their own ranks on the rancorous issue. Passage marked their most brazen challenge yet to Bush on a war that has killed more than 3,200 troops and lost favor with the American public.
He dismissed their action as "political theater" and said he would veto the bill if it reached his desk. The Senate is about to take up its own version.
The 124 billion House legislation would pay for war operations this year but would require that combat troops come home before September 2008 -- or earlier if the Iraqi government did not meet certain requirements. Democrats said it was time to heed the mandate of their election sweep last November, which gave them control of Congress.
Just over an hour after the vote, Bush angrily accused Democrats of playing politics and renewed his promise to veto the spending legislation if it included their withdrawal timetable, despite administration claims the money is needed next month by troops.
What Bush said
"These Democrats believe that the longer they can delay funding for our troops, the more likely they are to force me to accept restrictions on our commanders, an artificial timetable for withdrawal and their pet spending projects. This is not going to happen," he said.
Across the Capitol, the Senate planned to begin debate Monday on its own war spending bill, which also calls for a troop withdrawal -- and also has drawn a Bush veto threat.
The Senate's 122 billion measure would require that Bush begin bringing home an unspecified number of troops within four months with a nonbinding goal of getting all combat troops out by March 31, 2008.
These bills "offer a responsible strategy that reflects what the American people asked for in November -- redeploying our troops out of Iraq and refocusing our resources to more effectively fight the war on terror," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
Though Friday's House vote represented the Democrats' latest intensifying of political pressure on Bush, they still face long odds of ultimately forcing him to sign such legislation.
In the Senate, Democratic leaders will need 60 votes to prevail -- a tall order because that would mean persuading about a dozen Republicans to join them.
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