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Why Bush should veto the Iraq bill

May 1, 2007 | By Nathaniel Ward

Last week, liberals in both Houses of Congress pushed through a supplemental spending bill to fund the war on terror—an irresponsible bill that includes handouts to special interests and artificial deadlines for the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq.

“The President is getting ready to veto the supplemental, and he’s right to do that,” Heritage expert Alison Fraser says in a new Heritage video.

After the President vetoes the bill, Fraser explains, liberals in Congress hope to change strategy and pass a series of short-term spending bills to fund the troops. This short-term funding scheme is a mistake, however.

  • It would leave American commanders wondering if they’ll have the funding they need to fight and win in Iraq and other battlegrounds in the war on terror
  • It would open the door for more special-interest pork spending each time a funding bill comes up for consideration.

“What we need is for Congress to pass a clean bill that funds only the war,” Fraser concludes.

Take our poll: What are the best reasons for a veto?

Why deadlines are wrong

In a new paper, Heritage’s James Carafano outlines four important reasons Congress was wrong to set a fixed timeline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

Click here to read why the deadlines are wrong.

The consequences of retreat

“The lawmakers’ effort to micromanage the Iraq war is nothing less than shameful,” Heritage national security expert Peter Brookes writes in The New York Post.

It is “a cheap stunt to score political points. It’s much more about the elections in 2008 than our national security in 2007.”

Worse still, Heritage’s Nile Gardiner points out in a separate paper, the supplemental funding legislation undermines our important allies in Britain and the Middle East.

Click here for more on the consequences of this misguided legislation.

See John Stossel at Heritage on May 8

ABC News’ John Stossel has often proved an antidote to liberal distortions in the media. In a forthcoming lecture at The Heritage Foundation, Stossel examines the myth of a government solution to health care—a myth that parallels the many examples of distortions, lies and downright stupidity he’s taken on before.

Click here to read more about Stossel’s lecture at Heritage.

All MyHeritage.org readers are encouraged to attend this free event, which will be held at Heritage’s headquarters in Washington, DC on May 8. And if you’re unable to make it to Washington, you can watch Stossel’s lecture online.

One thousand lectures

Yesterday’s lecture on Margaret Thatcher’s leadership was the 1,000th lecture held at The Heritage Foundation.

In his milestone talk, John Blundell of Britain’s Institute of Economic Affairs outlined 10 key strategic lessons for achieving change we can learn from Lady Thatcher. (Lady Thatcher is a Heritage Patron.)

Click here to watch the entire event in Windows media format.

Heritage’s Swanson wins book award

Senior legal scholar James Swanson won rave reviews last year for his book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer. This novelization of the real-life story even made the New York Times bestseller list, and it’s set to be made into a film starring Harrison Ford.

Now his book has earned another award: the Edgar Allen Poe Award for the best true crime book of 2006. Swanson accepted the award last Thursday evening in New York City at the annual Mystery Writers of America dinner honoring Stephen King.

Past recipients of the prestigious Edgar award include Stephen King, Vincent Bugliosi, Patricia Cornwell, and Harlen Coben.

In other news

  • Congress is doing more this week than debating the war in Iraq. In a new video, Brian Darling of Heritage’s government relations team looks at what else Congress is considering this week.
  • 218 years ago yesterday, George Washington was sworn in as the first President of the United States.
  • Unconfirmed reports indicate that the leader of al Qaeda’s operations in Iraq has been killed. The terrorists deny the claim.
  • Demonstrators favoring amnesty for illegal immigrants marched today in cities nationwide to demand the government honor their demands for special treatment. Heritage urges policymakers not to reward lawbreakers with amnesty, a “path to citizenship” or other special privileges.
  • In yet another blow to property rights and economic freedom, Venezuelan despot Hugo Chavez has confiscated the nation’s last private oil fields. Energy analysts say this socialist takeover could wreak further havoc on the nation’s oil industry, which depends on private investment and expertise.
  • “Scientists from Nasa say that Mars has warmed by about 0.5C since the 1970s,” The Times of London reports. “This is similar to the warming experienced on Earth over approximately the same period. Since there is no known life on Mars it suggests rapid changes in planetary climates could be natural phenomena.”
  • A British judge sentenced five men with ties to al Qaeda to life in prison for planning brutal terrorist attacks.
  • The Supreme Court has refused to hear a Bush administration appeal of one of its environmental regulations. The regulation, struck down by lower courts, would have saved companies from expensive retrofitting to meet current regulations during plant upgrades.
  • Early reports indicate that the United States and China will challenge United Nations recommendations on greenhouse gas emissions on grounds that the onerous restrictions would be harmful and less effective than claimed. The final report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is due out Friday.

Coming up at Heritage

To attend the following Heritage Foundation events, RSVP at Heritage’s events website. Or you can watch these events live online at Heritage.org.  All times are Eastern.

Nathaniel Ward is the Editor of MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation.