House GOP throws Iraq funding into chaos

[babylonsister]

House GOP throws Iraq funding into chaos
By Mike Soraghan and Susan Crabtree
Posted: 05/15/08 04:19 PM


House Republicans threw the carefully choreographed Iraq war funding process into chaos Thursday when they declined to vote for $162.5 billion for combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The vote was a GOP protest against the tactics of Democrats who added extra spending and bypassed the committee process. Instead of voting “yes” or “no” on the funding measure, 132 Republicans instead voted “present.” Because of that, the measure failed by eight votes.

In the final tally 141 members voted yes; 149 voted no; 132 voted present; 12 did not vote.

“What you saw is certainly an aggressive, imaginative floor tactic,” said House Republican Conference Chairman Adam Putnam (Fla.). “What you see is that a majority of the majority doesn’t support a clean Iraq spending bill for the troops.”

Two other measures did pass. One called for immediate withdrawal with a goal of removing all combat troops by December 2009. The other was a domestic spending package with money for expanded unemployment benefits and a new college tuition benefit for veterans.

That created the odd legislative scenario of a spending bill that has restrictions on war spending, but no war spending.
:crazy:
more...

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/house-gop-throws-iraq-funding-into-chaos-2008-05-15.html

[maryf]

1. I wonder

The republican seem to be trying to take the fire from this vote, but fact is its the first vote to go down on Iraq funding since this occupation began!! Yippee!