UPDATED: Mike Castle among 11 Republicans who questioned Bush
UPDATE: Castle’s vote on the new funding bill will determine if the meeting in the White House was a bullshit PR stunt.
The bill would provide the military with $42.8 billion to keep operations going through July, buy equipment and train Iraqi and Afghan security forces. Congress would decide shortly before its August recess whether to release an additional $52.8 billion for war spending through September.
VoteVets.org ad provided the last straw
CASTLE (seems to be) getting the picture.
Mike Castle, forced by public pressure and the prospect of campaigning as a George Bush supporter, joined 11 Republican Congressmen (all of whom are worried about reelection) who told Bush:
“The word about the war and its progress cannot come from the White House or even you, Mr. President. There’s no longer any credibility. It has to come from General Petraeus.”
The Washing Post confirms Congressman Useless was in that group:
The meeting, which ran for an hour and a half Tuesday afternoon, was disclosed by participants yesterday as the House prepared to vote this evening on a spending bill that could cut funding for the Iraq war as early as July. GOP moderates told Bush they would stay united against the latest effort by House Democrats to end U.S. involvement in the war. Even Senate Democrats called the House measure unrealistic.
But the meeting between 11 House Republicans, Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, White House political adviser Karl Rove and presidential press secretary Tony Snow was perhaps the clearest sign yet that patience in the party is running out. The meeting, organized by Rep. Charlie Dent (Pa.), one of the co-chairs of the moderate “Tuesday Group,” included Reps. Thomas M. Davis III (Va.), Michael N. Castle (Del.), Todd R. Platts (Pa.), Jim Ramstad (Minn.) and Jo Ann Emerson (Mo.).
Crooks and liars has the Keith Olbermann report on the meeting (and video) which is riveting.
Castle is clearly shitting a brick.
Bush will ignore the message, of course. This is just political cover for some desparate Congressmen. Bush has no intention of honoring the will of Congress whether the message comes from Democrats or Republicans. I think it is starting to dawn on Republicans in Congress that Bush has as much contempt for them as he does for Democrats.
Bush will keep the war going and absorb and ignore all criticism, and his 28% will continue to adore him.
I call bullshit and you fell for it.
Castle went to get his “I talked back to the President Badge”
The clue is the “It has to come from General Petraeus” crap.
Now Patraeus says “we need to stay” and Castle goes into the election with clean hands.
“Republicans demand Bush turn over political power to the military”
Wow. I guess time will tell if I’m more naive than I ever imagined.
Seems to me the bottom line facts favor #1’s take but it is possible that Castle is the most cynical and reprehensible scumbag in the universe.
I skimmed over this part: GOP moderates told Bush they would stay united against the latest effort by House Democrats to end U.S. involvement in the war.
Which bolsters anon 2’s take.
In other words the R’s are saying “We are with you – but please pretend to be doing something so we don’t lose our next elections.”
you bastard, I was just going to put up a post about this!
I’ve been scooped!
Why are we listening to Patraeus? Bush fired all the generals who disagreed with him. Patraeus is just a rubber stamp for Bush’s agenda.
And, letting the generals run the occupation without civilian oversight is supposed to be against the law. Of course when the civilians are too incompetent to do their jobs I guess somebody has to step in.