Bush to Congress: No strings in Iraq, please
President Bush scolded Democrats in a White House press conference today for passing funding bills that called for deadlines on troop withdrawl from Iraq. He vowed to veto any bill that imposed timelines.
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KAI RYSSDAL: President Bush had a press conference this morning. His opening statement ran about 10 minutes or so. But he made his point within the first minute and a half.
GEORGE W. BUSH: It has now been 57 days since I requested that Congress pass emergency funds for our troops. Instead of passing clean bills that fund our troops on the front lines, the House and Senate have spent this time debating bills that undercut the troops.
Which is where the veto threat comes in.
The president’s asking for a clean bill — $103 billion straight up. No deadlines, no nothing. Congress is out of town for its Spring recess. But the Democrats who were in Washington today weren’t making many conciliatory noises either.