Bill to normalize Vietnam trade fails
The House on Monday failed to pass a bill establishing permanent normal trade relations with Vietnam in a setback for President Bush, who is visiting Hanoi this weekend.
Supporters failed to get the necessary two-thirds vote to approve the bill on the House “suspension calendar,” which is usually reserved for noncontroversial legislation.
It was unclear whether House Republicans would try this week to pass the bill through regular floor procedure, which requires just a majority vote.
The tally was 228 in favor of the bill and 161 opposed.
An unofficial tally showed that Republicans voted 2 to 1 in favor of the bill, while Democrats were almost evenly divided.
The setback increases the chance that Bush will go to this weekend’s annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Hanoi without delivering on a trade initiative his administration has said since May was a major priority.
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