Senate Votes Down Iraq Withdrawal

The Senate yesterday shot down a plan to cut all funding for the war in Iraq by next March. Russ Feingold's proposal, largely a test of anti-war support, was defeated in a 67-29 procedural vote, as Congress moves towards compromise with the White House on a spending measure.

But the ayes included all four senators (Obama, Clinton, Dodd and Biden) with White House ambitions. A Republican plan that would have funded the war indefinitely contingent on progress from Baghdad—which Feingold called "very tepid"—came closer to approval, but still fell short of the 60 required votes.