Iraq vote says it's Bush's way or the highway

[ProSense]

Today, the Senate voted on two Amendments---with 40 senators supporting one and 79 Senators supporting the other. I guess the one that got the most votes is the right way or a start, as the the media pundits will surely say.

Wrong. What's the timetable for withdrawal, even a draw down of troops? What's the strategy. The Warner amendment basically gives Bush more time to try to find a way to make his FAILED strategy work.

By voting for both Amendments, 21 Senators are indicating that they either believe the Warner Amendment doesn't go far enough or that it's a start.

So what happened today was that 19 Senators voted to either hold the Bush Administration accountable by calling for a change in course and a timetable, or to stay the course or to send in more troops.

Calling for a change in course and a timetable -- Only four Senators voted for the Levin Amendment and against the Warner Amendment:


Harkin (D-IA)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Leahy (D-VT)


Stay the course or to send in more troops -- The other 14 include McCain, who is advocating increasing the number of troops in Iraq:

Bunning (R-KY)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Conrad (D-ND)
DeMint (R-SC)
Graham (R-SC)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
McCain (R-AZ)
Sessions (R-AL)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)


Warner:
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00323

Levin:
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00322


Bush sets low standards and forces everyone else to accept them as the best we can do.

[BR_Parkway]

1. Wow - my NC R actually did something? Things must be bad

for him to actually go against Our Glorious Leader.

Damn, guess I need to call his office and give him a little positive reinforsement - ick.

[Mass]

3. If it is Burr, he did nothing

He voted against all forms of accountability.

[BR_Parkway]

7. Thanks, just realized I mis read that - should have known he'd

never do the right thing - only the 'right' thing

[Mass]

2. Careful. most of the Repubs voting against the Warner amdt

want NO accountability at all.

The four dems who voted for Levin and against Warner refused to vote for an amendment that did not call for Bush to say he will not occupy Iraq INDEFINITIVELY.

[ProSense]

5. Yeah, but maybe like McCain they want more war.

He voted against both.

[Mass]

6. Yeah, but the Warner amendment did not require less troops.

The only thing it required was some level of accountability.

[ProSense]

8. The distinction from the OP is that Levin's

calls for a change in strategy and a timetable.

[ProSense]

10. I made another edit to the OP

Not all 19 senators who voted against the Warner Amendment want Bush to change course.

[Selatius]

4. It's a step in the right direction

But a baby step before the mile makes it arguable it was worth anything.

[ProSense]

9. The way Bush is going, it's take forever to complete that mile.

Giving him all the time in the world to continue along this path makes no sense.

[ProSense]

11. I love the way Senator Reid framed the issue: Democrats forced

Republicans to admit that “staying the course” is not an option.

I was suggesting a stance that might be harder to convey to the public that it's not just about backing them down it's about implementing a solution. But I'll watch the Republican spin machine---the media.