Posted by
Ben Amis on Thursday, April 26, 2007 1:47:33 PM
Remember that pesky Emergency Supplemental? Well, it's almost in the hands of the President, ready for a swift veto.
While it was agreed to in both chambers of Congress, an amendment in the Senate had stalled it, for a little while. A conference committee had to meet in order to sort out differences in the House and Senate versions of the bill, and the House has approved the conference report as of yesterday. With this, the bill will be sent to the White House.
Why is this emergency supplemental such a problem for conservatives, and even moreso, Republicans? Not only is this a measure that would end the war, but it's how the Speaker has went about getting her votes. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-08) has this legislation loaded with pork, in order to entice Congressmen and women to vote for this bill and take some money home with them when it passes. Isn't this the same thing as buying votes?
The emergency supplemental (known as H.R. 1591), is a very long and extensive document due to all of this pork barreling. If you don't believe me, take a look for yourself. You can click here and view the printer-friendly version from the Library of Congress' website.
Further, if you're interested in some of the most tricky and twisted moves of the Democratic party to get this measure passed, you can click here to read my article on the Small Government Times about Rep. Kucinich's (D-OH-10) fight to get a word in edge-wide against his friends in his own party. Kucinich ended up voting against the supplemental, as promised, and took nine other democratic members with him.
It's also necessary to note that Congress currently does not have the votes needed to override Bush's imminent veto.