House Again Opposes Troop Pullout From Iraq

House Republicans, repeating a legislative tactic they used in November, sought to put Democrats on the spot Friday with a proposal opposing timetables for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

Although the debate was more civil than the one last month, when lawmakers bitterly squabbled over and soundly defeated a resolution calling for an immediate pullout, Friday’s measure drew more Democratic opposition.

The proposal, declaring that setting an “artificial timetable” for withdrawing the U.S. military from Iraq would be “inconsistent with achieving victory,” was approved 279 to 109.

Voting no were 108 Democrats and one independent. Supporting the resolution were 220 Republicans and 59 Democrats. Two Republicans and 32 Democrats voted “present.”

The vote illustrated the growing rift between the parties over whether the U.S. mission in Iraq would be best served by deadlines for withdrawal, as some Democrats have suggested.

Democrats assailed the measure as a political stunt, accusing Republicans of passing up an opportunity to send a unified message congratulating Iraqis for their parliamentary elections this week and thanking U.S. troops for their efforts.

Instead, said Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Burlingame), the GOP resolution was “deliberately calculated to be divisive.”

Rep. David Dreier (R-San Dimas) said the measure was needed to make it clear that “an arbitrary timeline for withdrawal cannot be dictated from Washington. We need to leave that up to the experts who are on the ground and in the fight.”

Last month, Republicans brought to the House floor a resolution, intended to fail, that called for an immediate withdrawal of the U.S. military.

That measure -- the GOP response to a call by Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), one of the House’s most respected military hawks -- sparked a bitter debate before it was overwhelmingly defeated, 403 to 3.

On Friday, Murtha opposed the new resolution, saying in a letter to his Democratic colleagues it “means that our troops could be [in Iraq] for 10 or 15 years.”

He also said, “We have to redeploy on a time schedule and give the Iraqis incentive to take over this war themselves.”

Rep. Candice S. Miller (R-Mich.), in supporting the resolution, said, “Now is not the time to wave the white flag.”

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) responded: “Nobody’s talking about waving the white flag. What we’re talking about is trying to figure out a way to make a bad situation less bad.”

McGovern said the Iraqi elections provided an opportunity for the U.S. to change course and begin bringing troops home. “As we pass the 1,000th day of the war in Iraq, I believe we must begin the transition to putting the Iraqis in charge,” he said.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), a sponsor of Friday’s resolution, said, “If we leave prematurely before the Iraqi people are able to stand on their own, we risk endangering all that we have worked for and that our brave men and women in the armed forces have fought and, in some cases, died for.”

Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) read the names of seven soldiers from his district who were killed in Iraq. He then said, “These seven men didn’t leave their posts, and this congressman won’t, either.”

Rep. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank, among a group of Democrats invited to the White House this week to discuss the war with President Bush, said he considered the resolution “not in keeping with the spirit” of the administration’s effort to reach out to Democrats. Schiff, who voted “present” on the resolution, said in an interview that GOP leaders believed that “whenever they can divide the Democratic members, it’s to their advantage.”

Peverill Squire, a political scientist at the University of Iowa, said Republicans appeared to be calculating “that they can put the Democrats on the political defensive by forcing them to vote against any sort of timetable for troop withdrawals. But many in the public are apt to see it as nothing more than an empty partisan gesture.”

Referring to the 2006 midterm election, he added, “For better or worse, events on the ground in Iraq will dictate Republican fortunes next November, not votes on resolutions.”

Among the California delegation, all Republicans supported the resolution. Democrats voting for it were Reps. Howard L. Berman of Valley Village, Dennis Cardoza of Atwater, Jim Costa of Fresno and Susan A. Davis of San Diego.

Opposing the measure were Democratic Reps. Xavier Becerra, Maxine Waters, Diane Watson and Henry A. Waxman of Los Angeles; Lucille Roybal-Allard of East Los Angeles; Joe Baca of Rialto; Lois Capps of Santa Barbara; Sam Farr of Carmel; Bob Filner of Chula Vista; Michael M. Honda of San Jose; Barbara Lee of Oakland; Juanita Millender-McDonald of Carson; George Miller of Martinez; Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco; Linda T. Sanchez of Lakewood; Hilda L. Solis of El Monte; Pete Stark of Fremont; and Lynne Woolsey of Petaluma. All others voted “present” except Grace F. Napolitano of Norwalk, who did not vote.