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Politics

Congress' budget deal dissolves

A blanket White House veto threat infuriates the bill's negotiators.

By Washington Post
Published December 11, 2007

WASHINGTON - A Democratic deal to give President Bush some war funding in exchange for additional domestic spending appeared to collapse Monday night after House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, D-Wis., accused Republicans of bargaining in bad faith.

Instead, Obey said he will push a huge spending bill that would hew to the president's spending limit by stripping it of all lawmakers' pet projects, as well as most of the Bush administration's top priorities. It would also contain no money for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"Absent a Republican willingness to sit down and work out a reasonable compromise, I think we ought to end the game and go to the president's numbers," Obey said. "I was willing to listen to the argument that we ought to at least add more for Afghanistan, but when the White House refuses to compromise, when the White House continues to stick it in our eye, I say to hell with it."

Obey's move came on the day he had been expected to unveil the bill, with a vote planned for today. The Senate had been expected to take up the bill later in the week, add funding for Iraq and make some final trims to Democrats' spending plans.

But a stern veto threat this weekend from White House budget director Jim Nussle put the deal in jeopardy. Nussle said Saturday that Bush would veto the omnibus spending bill sight unseen for exceeding Bush's budget by $18-billion.

Obey said he is prepared for a long standoff with the White House.

Obey's proposal did not move the White House to negotiate, spokesman Tony Fratto said. "Different day, different Democrat, different direction. Our position hasn't changed," Fratto said.

[Last modified December 11, 2007, 01:55:46]