Senate Backs Withdrawal Timetable

The Senate passed the emergency supplemental bill that included a withdrawal timetable to get the troops out of Iraq. President Bush will, of course, veto it, bringing himself and the Democrats to a face to face contest in which someone (the Democrats) will blink.

Democrats got the key support of the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, Ben Nelson of Nebraska. Nelson voted for the bill saying benchmarks are good to judge progress. Two Republicans, Gordon Smith of Oregon and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska voted with the Democrats; Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) called them "two brave Republicans." Joe Lieberman of Connecticut of course did not vote for the bill, sticking to his pro-war stance. Senator Mark Pryor (D-Arkansas) also voted against the bill. Pryor is up for reelection next year, as is Smith in Oregon.

Senator Thad Cochran (R-Mississippi) tried to get an amendment passed that would stricken the deadline language from the bill, it failed by the same margin the bill passed by.

The bill, essentially the same bill passed by the House, now goes to the President's desk, where he will veto it. The Democrats, unable to override his veto, will either have to cut all funding or compromise and stricken the withdrawal deadlines from the funding bill. That is going to be an interesting little battle to watch.

Meanwhile, the spinach and shrimp will get no money.