Snowe Embraces Troop Withdrawal Bill

[shawmut]

Source: Associated Press


WASHINGTON - Sen. Olympia Snowe on Wednesday became the second Republican to embrace a bill ordering troops out of Iraq as President Bush's national security adviser tried to stop defections from the White House war policy.

Snowe, R-Maine, joined Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., in co-sponsoring a bill that would require troops to start leaving in 120 days. The bill also would end combat by April 30, 2008.

Snowe's endorsement is a shift for the senator, who in recent months opposed a similar measure. Snowe had said earlier that she'd been considering signing on to the measure because the situation in Iraq was growing worse.

"Frankly, given the fact that the Iraqi government isn't prepared to change its own political direction, we should be prepared to change course with resepect to our strategy," Snowe told reporters Tuesday

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070711/ap_on_go_co/us_iraq

[Texifornia]

1. Her BFF

Joementum will not be pleased...

[BamaLefty]

2. LIEberman

is helping Susan Collins for 2008, right?

[Texifornia]

4. correct

Joementum will still not be pleased.

[MaineDem]

5. I think you may have her confused with Collins

I'm pretty sure Snowe and Lieberman aren't too closely connected.

Collins and Lieberman is a different story.

[karynnj]

8. Snowe's name is more often with Kerry's on bills

as they are the Dem and Rep head of the Small Business Committee, where they have respected each other no matter which party has the chair. She is has a global warming proposal with him and they are credited with brokering the deal that got the raise in CAFE standards - after an excellent SBC hearing that had some businesses stressing the need for it.

[TwilightGardener]

3. So what. It won't pass. The Webb amendment failed--should have been

a slam-dunk. I'm despondent.

[Eugene]

6. GOP Senators Call for Iraq Change Now

Source: Associated Press

GOP Senators Call for Iraq Change Now

Wednesday July 11, 2007 7:31 PM

By ANNE FLAHERTY

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Several Republican senators told President
Bush's top national security aide privately Wednesday that they
did not want Bush to wait until September to change course in
Iraq.

The meeting that lawmakers had with national security adviser
Stephen Hadley came as GOP Sens. Olympia Snowe and Chuck
Hagel announced they would back Democratic legislation
ordering combat to end next spring.

Republican support for the war has steadily eroded in recent
weeks as the White House prepared an interim progress report
that found that the U.S.-backed government in Baghdad has
made little progress in meeting major targets of reform.

Of the GOP lawmakers who say the U.S. should reduce its
military role in Iraq, nearly all are up for re-election in 2008.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6772733,00.html

[Hissyspit]

7. Blow to Bush as Another Republican Deserts on Iraq (Snowe)

Source: Agence France-Presse

Blow to Bush as another Republican deserts on Iraq
14 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) - President George W. Bush suffered a fresh blow on Iraq Wednesday, as another Republican senator joined a growing party revolt against his war strategy, declaring it at odds with reality.

Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine decided to co-sponsor a proposal written by a senior Democrat that would set a binding deadline of the end of April next year for US troops to be brought home.

"We have arrived at the crossroads of hope and reality, and we must now address the reality," Snowe said, after a period of reflection on whether to support new Senate challenges to Bush war policy. "We need to send a strong message from the United States Congress on behalf of the American people that the current strategy is unacceptable and that we must move in a different course," she said.

Snowe was the latest Republican senator to part with Bush on the war, days ahead of an interim report on latest political and military developments in Iraq, which is driving emotional Senate debate on future war policy.


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070711/ts_alt_afp/usiraqcongressbush_070711182449