Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Philadelphia Inquirer
January 16, 2008 By Anne Flaherty, Associated Press
WASHINGTON - The House plans to pass as early as today a new defense-policy bill that includes a pay raise for troops.
President Bush rejected an earlier version of the legislation because he said it would expose the Iraqi government to expensive lawsuits.
Democrats yesterday sent the bill back to the House Armed Services Committee, which will quickly redraft the measure to address Bush's concerns and send it back to the floor for a final vote by week's end.
The decision to revise the bill without attempting to block Bush's action reflects the difficulty that Democrats have had in challenging the president on even minor issues. Democrats lack the two-thirds majority needed to override a presidential veto.
The new bill is expected to increase troop pay by 3.5 percent, retroactive to Jan. 1. Overall, the bill authorizes about $696 billion in defense spending, including $189 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to setting pay raises for service members, the bill's primary purpose is to guide Pentagon policy, including setting restrictions on the Pentagon's multibillion-dollar acquisition program.
Amended will be a provision by Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D., N.J.) that would have guaranteed that U.S. victims of state-sponsored abuse have the right to sue those governments in court. The legislation was embraced by Republicans. By mid-December, the bill passed by overwhelming margins in both chambers.
A couple of weeks later, after Iraqi officials objected, Bush announced his opposition. He said the bill would subject the Iraqi government, struggling to rebuild itself, to expensive lawsuits seeking damages from the Saddam Hussein era.
The new bill will probably grant Bush the authority to waive the provision, effectively making it null and void, according to a Democratic aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision was not final.
January 16, 2008 By Anne Flaherty, Associated Press
WASHINGTON - The House plans to pass as early as today a new defense-policy bill that includes a pay raise for troops.
President Bush rejected an earlier version of the legislation because he said it would expose the Iraqi government to expensive lawsuits.
Democrats yesterday sent the bill back to the House Armed Services Committee, which will quickly redraft the measure to address Bush's concerns and send it back to the floor for a final vote by week's end.
The decision to revise the bill without attempting to block Bush's action reflects the difficulty that Democrats have had in challenging the president on even minor issues. Democrats lack the two-thirds majority needed to override a presidential veto.
The new bill is expected to increase troop pay by 3.5 percent, retroactive to Jan. 1. Overall, the bill authorizes about $696 billion in defense spending, including $189 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to setting pay raises for service members, the bill's primary purpose is to guide Pentagon policy, including setting restrictions on the Pentagon's multibillion-dollar acquisition program.
Amended will be a provision by Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D., N.J.) that would have guaranteed that U.S. victims of state-sponsored abuse have the right to sue those governments in court. The legislation was embraced by Republicans. By mid-December, the bill passed by overwhelming margins in both chambers.
A couple of weeks later, after Iraqi officials objected, Bush announced his opposition. He said the bill would subject the Iraqi government, struggling to rebuild itself, to expensive lawsuits seeking damages from the Saddam Hussein era.
The new bill will probably grant Bush the authority to waive the provision, effectively making it null and void, according to a Democratic aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision was not final.