Sen. Levin hints at emerging Democratic strategy on Iraq

By Manu Raju
The Hill

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) is working with a key appropriator on a strategy to halve the White House’s war-funding request to pressure President Bush into changing course in Iraq.

Levin said Wednesday that giving Bush a six-month installment plan on the nearly $200 billion fiscal 2008 war-funding request would serve a dual purpose: It would intensify pressure on the president to change course after next June, while avoiding “sending a negative message to the troops,” because war funding would continue until next may or June, when the president would have to request a second funding bill.

Levin, who is working with Appropriations Committee member Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), said the duo is talking with the panel’s other Democrats about including language in the supplemental that would target a complete withdrawal from Iraq in nine months.

Employing that approach could put the onus on Republican opponents to secure 60 votes on the Senate floor to strip the withdrawal language from the bill, Levin said. Some centrist Republicans have been open to the idea of a timetable for withdrawal, but have called for the goal to be 15 months.

The ideas are under serious consideration within the Democratic Conference, senators said Wednesday. Democrats are still finalizing strategy and, according to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), “Everything is on the table. The only thing that is not on the table is signing a blank check.”

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