Bush to veto Iraq withdrawal
Democrats want US troops out of Iraq by next March
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Wednesday, 28, Mar 2007 05:25
US president George Bush has vowed to veto proposed legislation which includes plans for the withdrawal of American troops in Iraq.
In a speech today, Mr Bush warned that he would be forced to reject the law, which also includes measures to provide additional funding for US troops, if Congress insisted in including a controversial clause which proposes a deadline for pulling the country's forces out of Iraq by next March.
Stressing that the "clock is ticking" for US military personnel, with funding for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan due to begin running out next month, the president insinuated that the public would hold the Democrats responsible if the money was not forthcoming as a result of the legislative row.
"If Congress fails to pass a bill to fund our troops on the front lines, the American people will know who to hold responsible,' Mr Bush told the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, arguing that setting a deadline for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq would mean that terrorists "would simply have to mark their calendars".
The president's vow to veto the proposal came after the US Senate voted by a narrow margin yesterday to endorse the plan.
In a victory for the Democrats, senators voted by 50 to 48 against a Republican amendment which would have taken out the troop withdrawal clause from a bill on military funding.
The battle concerning the future of US troops in Iraq now looks far from being over, given the White House's determination to block the bill, which aims to provide more than $120 billion (£60 billion) in emergency funding for American forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A final Senate vote on the legislation containing the withdrawal plans will now take place next week.
Responding to yesterday's vote, Senate majority leader Harry Reid said the legislation gave President Bush the opportunity to change course in Iraq.
"With this vote, the Senate is giving our troops the resources they need in combat - including a strategy in Iraq worthy of their sacrifices," he said.
"The president must change course, and this legislation gives him a chance to do that," Mr Reid added.