US House votes for Iraq troop pullout

WASHINGTON – Ignoring President George W Bush’s staunch vow of a veto, the US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a war funding bill that includes a timetable for pulling US troops out of Iraq.

Lawmakers paid little heed to the visiting top army general in Iraq, David Petraeus, who during a closed-door session earlier in the day championed the troop “surge” strategy and appealed for time so it could show results. The narrow 218-208 vote by the Democratic-majority House links release of 124 billion dollars in military spending for Iraq and Afghanistan to a schedule for the pullout of American troops, beginning as early as October.The bill next faces a vote in the Senate, expected on Thursday, when it is likely to be approved.Then it heads to Bush, who has repeatedly vowed to block it.”Tonight, the House of Representatives voted for failure in Iraq,” said a statement by White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.”Democrats have forced this process to continue for too long.The president calls on the Senate to quickly pass this legislation so the president can veto it.”Bush would then “work with the Congressional leadership on a clean bill that funds our troops while respecting the judgement of our military commanders and helping ensure the safety of the American people,” Perino said.Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi played up the thousands of casualties endured by US troops and the “scores of thousands” of Iraqi lives lost in the war, which she added would “cost well over a trillion dollars if it ended today.””The sacrifices borne by our troops and their families demand more than the blank checks the president is asking for, for a war without end,” she said.She urged Bush “to sign the bill so that we can focus on winning the war against terrorism, which is the real threat to the American people.”Democrats were also boosted by the release of a poll that showed a majority of Americans side with them on the issue and believe victory in Iraq is no longer possible.According to the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 56 per cent said they agreed with setting a deadline for troop withdrawal, while 37 per cent sided with Bush in opposing the move.The bill provides more cash than the administration sought to bankroll operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, but says US troops are to start withdrawing from Iraq in October, with a non-binding target of completing the pullout by March 31.Nampa-AFPThe narrow 218-208 vote by the Democratic-majority House links release of 124 billion dollars in military spending for Iraq and Afghanistan to a schedule for the pullout of American troops, beginning as early as October.The bill next faces a vote in the Senate, expected on Thursday, when it is likely to be approved.Then it heads to Bush, who has repeatedly vowed to block it.”Tonight, the House of Representatives voted for failure in Iraq,” said a statement by White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.”Democrats have forced this process to continue for too long.The president calls on the Senate to quickly pass this legislation so the president can veto it.”Bush would then “work with the Congressional leadership on a clean bill that funds our troops while respecting the judgement of our military commanders and helping ensure the safety of the American people,” Perino said.Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi played up the thousands of casualties endured by US troops and the “scores of thousands” of Iraqi lives lost in the war, which she added would “cost well over a trillion dollars if it ended today.””The sacrifices borne by our troops and their families demand more than the blank checks the president is asking for, for a war without end,” she said.She urged Bush “to sign the bill so that we can focus on winning the war against terrorism, which is the real threat to the American people.”Democrats were also boosted by the release of a poll that showed a majority of Americans side with them on the issue and believe victory in Iraq is no longer possible.According to the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 56 per cent said they agreed with setting a deadline for troop withdrawal, while 37 per cent sided with Bush in opposing the move.The bill provides more cash than the administration sought to bankroll operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, but says US troops are to start withdrawing from Iraq in October, with a non-binding target of completing the pullout by March 31.Nampa-AFP