GOP Leader Threatens Filibuster On Iraq

Sen. Mitch McConnell Warns He May Block Legislation Expressing Disapproval Of Bush's Plan

(AP)  President Bush's decision to deploy 21,500 additional troops to Iraq drew fierce opposition Thursday from congressional Democrats, but the Senate's top Republican threatened a filibuster to block any legislation expressing disapproval of the plan.

"Obviously, it will ... require 60 votes," said Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., as senior administration officials made the case for Mr. Bush's new policy in Congress, at news briefings and the morning television programs.

"This is a time for a national imperative not to fail in Iraq," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

On the morning after Bush's primetime speech from the White House, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., declared: "In choosing to escalate the war, the president virtually stands alone."

Many Republicans, too, were clearly tired of the war, which has cost more than 3,000 American troops their lives, and played a major role in the Democratic takeover of Congress in last fall's elections.

"At this late stage, interjecting more young American troops into the crossfire of an Iraqi civil war is simply not the right approach," said Rep. Ric Keller, R-Fla. "We are not going to solve an Iraqi political problem with an American military solution," he said in remarks on the House floor.

At a news conference, McConnell accused Democrats of secretly favoring a plan to cut off funding for the troops — an allegation that Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. denied.

McConnell conceded that Republicans as well as Democrats are troubled by Mr. Bush's new policy, but said, "Congress is completely incapable of dictating the tactics of the war."

Reid has said he will schedule a vote on a nonbinding bill expressing disapproval of Mr. Bush's new policy, but McConnell's filibuster threat indicated that he would not be rushed into the vote. Under the Senate's rules, 60 votes are required to cut off debate on an issue, and even the threat of a filibuster can force concessions by the majority.

McConnell's threat underscored that at least some GOP leaders are still willing to stand up for the president in the battle over Iraq policy. Even so, Democrats would achieve their goal of forcing senators to show their positions on the war whether the Senate votes on the resolution itself or a GOP effort to block it.

Mr. Bush's new strategy, announced Wednesday in a primetime address to the nation, increases U.S. forces in Iraq by 21,500 and demands greater cooperation from the Iraqi government.

Options for critics of the war were limited; Democratic leaders have mulled such a resolution of disapproval and there also has been talk of attaching a host of conditions to approval of a spending bill to cover the costs of the buildup.

[processor2]

If it was OK for Democrats to fillibuster everything for the last 6 years, then it's OK for Republicans to act like Democrats and do the same.

........

[grazinggoat]

It's the bully way of negotiation republicans brag about. Bring 'em on... yeeeehhaaaa!

[skyk-2009]

Where are our Statesmen? ONCE we had people who were not only willing to engage those we did not agree with but stood willing to do so. They would sit down and explain why it is better for all of us in this world to try and get along than to be bombing each other and they used the MIGHT of our Military as a tool to convince people. The Fascist Administration of George Bush seems to think that Statesmanship is a weekness but then they thought Saddam and Bin Laden were pals. They think they can build a bigger bomb or faster jet and somehow dictate to all what to think and how to act. God what a horrible mess we have gotten ourselves into with this two bit Southern Fascist!

[jebediah76]

JPlo -

Um - the reason the U.S. dollar is decreasing is because of the debt we've had to go into to fund the war - what is it - $375,000,000,000.00 at this point? yes - that's billion with a B.

I think you will find that this figure dwarfs what the Bush Administration budgets for education, for healthcare, or for any of these "Keynsian" programs you seem to hate so much. I'm not saying big government and high spending is good, but as a fiscal conservative Bush fails brilliantly. True fiscal conservatives can only watch in abject horror as this man spends and writes checks that we will be paying or for years to come. THAT is scary.

[jebediah76]

Amen, Kate, Amen.
Now if we could only get Mr. PLO here to use punctuation!

[nyckate]

jebediah76 - Pat Robertson a federal judge?? - now that is a really really scary thought - we're going to have to force them to pass sanity tests from now on!!

I don't disagree with filibusters - I just despise the hypocracy of the GOP who decried them so horribly a short while ago when they thought they had a lock on the entire US government top to bottom - we can't forget who adn what the likes of McConnel, Bush and Rove are - hypocrits through adn through.

[jebediah76]

JasonPlo -
If you remember - the reason massive government spending was neccessary was that the country was in the middle of a depression? and WHY was it in the middle of a depression? Because Standard Oil and U.S. Steel refused to pay living wages, because the robber barons had all the money and were stamping their feet that the economy was going nowhere, AND they were fighting the rights of workers to organize!

Sounds like your kind already won once - and they gave as the Great Depression. Thanks, but I'll pass on round two.

Of course the U.S. has slightly socialist domestic policies - the alternative is economic anarchy.

[nyckate]

Jason_plo - the sunni shiite kurds wars have been on-going for between 8-13 centuries.

Also, Invasion of Iraq had NOTHING to do with the War on Terrorism. The bombing in Somalia does - cause you see that's where AQ is, not saddam controlled Iraq.

And if you think Bush and Rumsfeld were interested in going after AQ then why did htey team up with the Kurds who were the ones who aided AQ and allowed and aided AQ training camps in their part of Iraq which they controlled since the Gulf War? That's right - Bush and Rumsfeld had our guys teamed up and siding with those Kurds who helped those who attacked us on 9-11.

[jebediah76]

Also - the Nuclear Option in that debate was something no one wanted. Do you think they will get away with the Clinton era shenanigans again? If they were to try it the Dems would push the nuclear option right back across the table - so at the very least it should never be an issue again.

[Jasonian18]

who says ending the war unsafely quick is American i suppose you just want more deaths to occur to our soldiers it is you who is unamerican fool.

[Jasonian18]

this government isn't fascist it is more socialist then should be though all thanks to roosevelt real pity he had to listen to Keynsian economics and start major government spending had that not happend our country wouldn't have a declining currency right now.

[Jasonian18]

so your saying that what the democrats are doing for America is good and that they are American? please they are just as non American as McConnell and by the way sending more troops over will end it quicker duh! the more troops we have over there the faster we can get out because we can't just leave we are winning th war on terrorism granted it is not just held to Iraq or Afghanistan and the war in Iraq is a success we have no hope of stopping the Sunni Shiite war so we can't imagine to try either that was not our goal what we did was hinder Al Quaeda from attacking again quickly or otherwise.

[Jasonian18]

Reagan is the one who allowed so much government spending and he wasn't the only one Roosevelt did too and need i remind everyone that more people died in Katrina then in Iraq so its not like that many people died in retrospect need i also remind everyone that this is one of the smallest and least costive wars in history granted 1 death is too much but seriously
NEED I REMIND EVERYONE WHY WE WENT TO WAR! THE TWIN TOWERS WERE DESTROYED AND THOUSANDS WERE KILLED THOSE BODIES OF WHICH ARE STILL BEING DUG UP THIS DAY! WE WENT TO WAR BECAUSE THEY DECLARED WAR ON US AL QUAEDA WAS BASICALLY IN CONROLE OF IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN THAT IS WHY WE WENT TO WAR AND ANYONE WHO DARES MENTION IT AGAIN HOW IT IS AN UNWINNABLE WAR MIGHT AS WELL GO TO IRAQ AND GIVE THE AL QUAEDA LEADER THE KEYS TO OUR NATION WE CAN'T JUST GIVE UP JUST A FEW DAYS AGO WE GOT MORE AL QUAEDA MEMBERS TAKEN OUT OH I FORGOT YOU ARE THE PEOPLE WHO SAY THAT 9/11 NEVER HAPPENED AND IT IS ONE BIG HOAX YOU ARE INSANE! nuff said.

[jebediah76]

I agree NYCkate

THey are terribly whiny - I was simply pointing out the differences between the Judicial filibuster and the conventional, run of the mill Filibuster.

The Fili is a tool of the minority - the debate was equating McConnell's fili to the judicial fili uproar the Reps caused a few years back. Its apples and oranges.

Judicial fili is sour grapes when either side does it. However, the threat of it might just be why Roe v. Wade has yet to be overturned- hell, if Dubya had no oposition he could have made Pat Robertson a supreme court judge! - so count your blessings.

[jeffk1623]

superdem

Not all hillbillies are ignorant and arrogant NEOCONs like Bush and company. I was born in KY and I agree with all your statements...

[netadmin1-2009]

fascistUSA -

If you don't like America, you can always move to Iraq.

[egresor]

dang superdem!

you're giving hillbilly's a bad name there!

ps
I was born in kentucky.

but you're right. the boil hasn't ripened yet. and absolutely right in saying that they have run this country into the ground. gave away all the money in government coffers to the rich. eased pollution laws and gotten us involved in several conflicts on top of that.

I hope the voters will remember what clinton had done for the economy and they destroyed in practically one fell swoop, but if nothing else americans are patriotic and stubbornly so. and the republicans know how to appeal to that patriotism....along with prejudices and devisive issues.

remember what gulliver's travels said:

"Care and Vigilance, with a very common Understanding, may preserve a Man's Goods from Thieves, but Honesty has no fence against superior Cunning"

and

"whoever could make two ears of corn or two blades of grass to grow upon a spot of ground where only one grew before, would deserve better of mankind, and do more essential service to his country than the whole race of politicians put together"

:)

[nyckate]

jebediah76 - for 8 years of Clinton's presidency the GOP refused up-down vote of close to 70% of clinton's nomination - the GOP doesn't care about showing fairness - they are just a bunch of whiney, whingey bullies, then and now.

[book54552134]

Only a week into the new Congress & already radical Republicans are theatening to use their veto. An ominous sign.
It seems to me that, during the past 6 years, there were only a few times that meek & mild Senate Democrats threatened to use their power to filibuster & fewer still that they actually used that power.
This is simply another example of how these boldly aggressive Republicans & the Administration itself will thwart any Democratic efforts to block the Bush Administration's agenda. Between Dubya's veto power & the Senate Republican's aggressive use of the filibuster, the best that can be hoped for in the next 2 years is stalemate. For those who are fed up with the madness we have seen for the past 6 years, they will have to wait another 2 years for a true chance at significant change. It is the price we all must pay for allowing the political situation in this country to get so far out of whack.

[shedhouserob-2009]

M McConnel- Is he a Republican first, an American last. What's good for America. Here we have a president that will go down in history as a oil man (cheney's puppet) that got us in this war. It's Cheney's war! Mr. McConell you have a obligation as a American to do the right thing! Not party- To hell with Republicans and Democrats. Do what your suppose to as a American