White House treads carefully on Iraq [View All]

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070209/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_congress_iraq

White House treads carefully on Iraq

By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS, Associated Press Writer 25 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - The White House is attempting an awkward straddle as Congress debates resolutions critical of the Iraq war, determined to avoid a repudiation of President Bush yet reluctant to lobby too aggressively for fear of triggering a Republican backlash.


Bush's "ability to sway votes on issues like this has been severely diminished," says Sen. Lindsey Graham (news, bio, voting record), a South Carolina Republican and a supporter of the president's troop buildup. "I don't think people are going to cheerlead now."

At least a half-dozen Republican senators appear ready to vote for a nonbinding measure critical of Bush's decision to deploy an additional 21,500 troops. Sen. Arlen Specter (news, bio, voting record), R-Pa., said he told the president after one recent White House meeting that he "didn't see the need for more troops. I raised my concerns, and he listened."

In the House, GOP leaders concede there will be defections next week when a vote is scheduled on a measure expressing disapproval of the troop increase.

It's a sign of the change in relations between congressional Republicans and the administration after nearly four years of war, the deaths of more than 3,000 U.S. military personnel and the midterm elections that gave Democrats control of the House and Senate.