Senate Republicans Threaten to Block Start of Debate on Iraq [View All]

Senate Republicans Threaten to Block Start of Debate on Iraq

By Nicholas Johnston and Laura Litvan

Feb. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Republicans will block the start of debate on a nonbinding resolution opposing President George W. Bush's Iraq strategy unless two Republican alternatives are also considered.

Democrats, who control the chamber 51-49, need the votes of 60 senators to begin debate on Monday on a resolution expressing opposition to Bush's plan to send 21,500 more U.S. troops to Iraq. McConnell said all Republicans will vote against starting debate unless Democrats consent to consider other measures.

``We insist on a process that allows several different approaches on our side to this issue,'' McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, told reporters in Washington. ``We have a lot to say about the process by which the matter is debated.''

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and other Democrats have united behind a resolution by Republican John Warner expressing opposition to Bush's strategy while stating that funds for troops already deployed will not be cut.
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Senator McConnell