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After weeks of frenetic negotiating within the Democratic Caucus, the Emergency Iraq Supplemental Spending Bill passed in the House yesterday by a narrow victory - 218 to 212. Fourteen Democrats voted against the bill split basically between the conservative Blue Dog Caucus and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. PDA Board members Rep. Barbara Lee (CA) voted against the bill and Raul Grijalva (AZ) voted for it.
Rep. Lee made the following comments:
“As someone who opposed this war from the beginning, I have voted against every single penny for this war and found myself today in the difficult position of having to choose between voting against funding for the war or for establishing timelines to end it.
“While as a matter of conscience I cast my vote against the funding, I hope that this passage of this bill marks the beginning of the end of the Iraq war, but the real fight still lies ahead. Congress will continue to have to confront the issue of this war and occupation, and I am committed to continuing to push to fully fund the safe withdrawal of our troops from Iraq at the earliest practicable date and for timelines for withdrawal that are backed up by the appropriations power that the Constitution grants to Congress.”
These comments were made by Rep. Grijalva:
"I have opposed funding this war from the beginning, and I have no interest in funding it today. But this Iraq Accountability Act, though flawed, and at odds with many of my beliefs, represents a chance for hope. It represents a first, all be it tentative, step in the difficult process of finally bringing this devastating war to an ultimate end. In good conscience, I could not sit on the sidelines, with the vote as close as it was, and witness a result that would reinforce this administrations unrestrained control of a war without end.
"Absent the need for my vote, I would have opposed this bill. I have conferred with constituents on all sides of this debate, and have looked at all the alternatives. I remained committed to opposing this bill until it became apparent that my vote was the only way to ensure some accountability against this runaway administration.
"Despite my skepticism in the efficacy of the benchmarks and certification elements in this bill, I remain confident that this will not be the last word by this Congress on Iraq, and I will continue to fight for the cause of ending this terrible debacle in Iraq."
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