The Senate has passed a massive spending bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The measure also calls on U.S. troops to be out of Iraq by next spring. The House approved a similar bill last week. President Bush has also reiterated his promise to veto any bill with a timetable for withdrawal.
But before that moment arrives, Senate and House leaders must work out their differences. The Senate bill was approved 51-47, mostly along party lines.
The $122 billion measure contains two things the president didn't ask for: an extra $20 billion or so in domestic spending, and a goal of having all U.S. troops out of Iraq a year from now.
Under the Senate bill's provisions, troop withdrawals would begin 120 days after enactment, with a goal of ending combat operations in Iraq by next March.
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