Sen. Robert Byrd wants strings attached to Iraq war funding bill

In the face of an almost $200 billion emergency war supplemental for fiscal 2008, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.), urged lawmakers not to pass the measure without strings attached.

“In the fifth year of this misguided war, I am convinced that the best way to support our troops is to bring them home, and the only way to get them home may be to somehow restrict the funds for this disastrous war,” Byrd said in a floor statement on Monday.

While attempts to place conditions on the 2007 supplemental resulted in a presidential veto earlier this year, Byrd is insisting that the Senate try again.

“Strings must be attached to this money,” he said.

The White House has requested $147 billion for 2008 military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Secretary Robert Gates is expected to ask for an additional $45 billon when he testifies before the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Many Democrats may be reluctant to approve the full amount of the supplemental, instead considering funding three to four months at a time.

Democrats also are working on a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government operating through mid-November. As part of the CR, the Pentagon would be funded at 2007 levels, which includes $70 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

House and Senate Democrats intend to fund more than $5 billion for the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle (MRAP).

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said lawmakers must focus on the CR this week. “All the rest is still open to discussion,” he told reporters. He insisted that the CR should cover both MRAP production and the Pentagon’s bottom line.

“If the military’s needs are not met in the CR, we’d be prepared to offer amendments,” he said.