Senate rejects setting Iraq withdrawal deadline

The Senate Wednesday voted 29–67 to reject an amendment that would have cut off funding for U.S. combat operations in Iraq after March 31, 2008.

{mosads}The amendment, sponsored by Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) and backed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), fell far short of the required 60 votes to pass and did not attract any Republican support.

“Once again, an overwhelming bipartisan majority rejected giving our enemy a timeline for withdrawal,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said. “The U.S. Senate has continued to show that an arbitrary surrender date is a non-starter. We need to move forward with the business of ensuring our troops have the funding, training and equipment they need to complete their mission.”

The two frontrunners for the Democratic presidential nomination, Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and Barack Obama (Ill.), voted in favor of cloture.