Republican Senate defies Bush, votes to add 20,000 troops to Army

[zaj]

I just caught this...

Is this a publicity stunt? Or are the Republicans starting to split with the WH? Gotta love the McCain comment!

http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/06/17/army.troops.ap/

Senate votes to add 20,000 troops to Army
Thursday, June 17, 2004 Posted: 8:53 PM EDT (0053 GMT)

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Defying the Bush administration, the Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday to add 20,000 troops to an Army stretched thin by the war in Iraq and other commitments around the world.

The 93-4 vote in the Republican-led Senate -- following a similar action by the House -- reflected the anxieties lawmakers have been hearing from families of service personnel whose tours in Iraq keep getting extended and whose return to civilian life is repeatedly postponed.

Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, said the lack of troops at the end of major combat in Iraq cost the military an opportunity to stop the violence that continues today.

"We didn't have enough people on the ground, and now we are paying a very, very heavy price for that incredible mistake on the part of the civilian leadership in the Pentagon of the United States of America," he said.

[acmavm]

1. Where they gonna get these 20,000 warm bodies, kidnap them? Or

maybe a draft? By now I would think everyone would be a little wary of joining for the healthcare benefits, etc. I just don't see them waving a magic wand and viola, 20,000 more troops appear like in a David Copperfield special.

[AndyTiedye]

2. IT'S GETTING DRAFTY -- Maybe They Won't Wait Until The Election

If they think they have bipartisan support they won't wait.

Would any Dems other than Rangel fall for it?
If that happened, it would be a disaster for us --
A whole lot of people bolt to Nader and Bush* wins by a landslide.:puke:

[filterfish]

4. no to speak in code but...

mccain's a neocon

20K more when we should be getting the hell out doesn't make sense, but then again maybe kerry agrees with all this

[FlemingsGhost]

3. 20,000 more targets. Thank the Democrats, too.

Window-dress and rationalize this all you want. The Senate just about unanimously voted to escalate the war in Iraq. You know, the one that officially ends next week.

[greatauntoftriplets]

5. I am having Vietnam flashbacks.

That was a bipartisan war.

[zaj]

6. The article actually says that the Army supposedly doesn't want them...

They don't want the 20,000 permanant soldiers added to the rolls.