Senate leader pulls defense bill after falling short on key Iraq vote

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., abruptly pulled the fiscal 2008 defense authorization bill from the floor Wednesday after an all-night debate on the war in Iraq failed to gain enough support for an amendment mandating a significant reduction in U.S. forces there.

Despite a much-publicized push to pressure Republicans, especially those seeking re-election next year, to back the language, Senate Democrats today could muster only a 52-47 vote on a motion to end debate on the troop withdrawal amendment, eight votes short of the 60 required to invoke cloture.

Reid promptly announced he would temporarily shelve the bill and work on gaining more Republican support for troop-withdrawal language.

The amendment, sponsored by Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., and Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., would have required the Bush administration to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq within four months, bringing U.S. forces down to only a "limited presence" in the country by the spring.

Reid would not say when he would recall the measure to the floor other than to say "as soon as possible." Asked if he would wait until the White House delivers a much-anticipated Sept. 15 progress report on Iraq, Reid said: "That's up to Republicans."

Republicans sharply rebuked Democrats for their decision to pull the authorization bill after more than a week of debate, arguing that it contains important policy provisions, including an amendment approved last week to improve health care for veterans.

"The Senate is spiraling into the ground," Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott, R-Miss., told reporters. "This is a tragedy to the American people."

Senate Armed Services ranking member John McCain, R-Ariz., added that he and Levin would have been able to wrap the bill up by the end of the week were it not for the Iraq debate. "That's what's throwing this whole thing in the ditch," McCain said, adding that he feared this could mark the first year Congress has not passed a defense authorization measure in 45 years.

Democrats branded the Republican tactic of demanding 60-vote majorities on all Iraq amendments as "obstructionist" maneuvers. The 60-vote threshold is "new math developed by Republicans to protect the president," Reid said. He also criticized Republicans for blocking a managers' package of 26 noncontroversial amendments, which typically passes on a voice vote.

Criticized by Republicans for staging "political theater," Democrats Wednesday defended their all-night session, which they say shed light on the Iraq debate and helped gain one new vote for the Levin-Reed measure. A similar provision introduced by the two senators failed, 51-46, in April. In June 2006, another similar amendment received only 39 votes.

"We stayed up all night, but it was more than worth it," Democratic Senatorial Campaign Chairman Charles Schumer of New York said. "We're not going to stop until we get to 60."

Voting with Democrats Wednesday were Sens. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., Gordon Smith, R-Ore., Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, both R-Maine. Before the vote, all but Collins had endorsed the Levin-Reed amendment. Reid had hoped to turn immediately to the fiscal 2008 Homeland Security appropriations bill, but Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., objected. Instead, the Senate is debating an education reconciliation bill.