Democrats look past Bush on Iraq spending measure

Democrats will ignore President Bush’s demand not to load the Iraq supplemental spending bill with extras that push the total past $108 billion, Democratic leaders said, but they won’t attach a new stimulus package to the legislation.

Leaders are still weighing, however, numerous sensitive political questions about what to include in the spending bill that many see as the last major bill that will pass before the November elections.

{mosads}“This is kind of a last, defining bill,” Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) said. “When you get into the summer, there’s the conventions and then you can kiss any initiative goodbye.”

Asked if the bill would exceed Bush’s threshold of $108 billion, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) took a defiant tone.

“I’m sure it will,” he said, “contrary to the administration’s sending its tablets down from the mount.”

Hoyer also said the bill could be on the floor as early as next week. But there are many issues left unresolved that touch on the biggest issues in American politics: the war in Iraq and the sliding economy.

Leaders must still decide whether to tie funding for the war to a withdrawal date. And they have to decide whether to allow a vote on even tougher anti-war language. They are contemplating bringing it directly to the floor instead of going through committee.

Then they have to look at how to steer the bill through the Senate and how to get Republicans on board for a stimulus if the issue isn’t combined with Iraq funding.

“If you’re going to bring the bill directly to the floor, the leadership has to have consensus among the members. I have suspicion there isn’t a consensus in the leadership,” Moran said. “The Senate can get 60 votes to fund a war. I don’t know that you can get 60 votes to pass an economic stimulus package.

Liberal Democrats in the House were likely pleased to hear that the supplemental would not be combined with any stimulus. They were worried that Democratic leaders would try to make them choose between voting to end the war and helping out people hit by the economic downturn.

“We don’t want the supplemental and the stimulus combined in any way,” said Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.). “We want the issues separated.”

But liberals also think the stimulus should be brought up first — taking care of the economy before taking care of Iraq. If, as Hoyer said, the supplemental bill could be on the floor late next week, there’s little time to get the stimulus done first.

Waters said she is concerned about “rumors” she has heard that leaders may keep the bills separate on the House side, but combine them on the Senate side.

Liberals are also worried about a plan being floated to give Bush even more money than he requested for the Iraq war, enough money to pay for it into June of next year.

Earlier this week, Democratic Congressional Campaign Chairman Chris Van Hollen (Md.), a member of leadership, said he expects the House to pass a withdrawal date in the supplemental. But Democratic aides said no decision had been made.

“It’s a calculation,” said Moran, an ardent supporter of withdrawal language.

Heightening the tension on the supplemental is the fact that many consider it to be the only spending bill that will pass in Bush’s lame-duck year as Democratic leaders wait out Bush’s veto threats to see if he’s replaced by a Democrat.

“This might be the only bill that has sufficient leverage. The president has to sign this,” Moran said.