Today, Michigan’s two Democratic Party Senators–Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow–voted in support of an amendment to a $165 billion war funding bill that would have assigned a timeline to the continued occupation of Iraq in addition to other restrictions on US military operations. However, the amendment failed via a 34-63 vote. The funding portion of the bill–which had no restrictions and no timeline for withdrawal–then passed the Senate via a 70-26 vote. Both Levin and Stabenow voted to fund the war without restriction, making their earlier votes essentially meaningless.
The spending bill is intended to pay for the continued occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan through spring of next year. The bill must now go back to the House of Representatives that voted down a funding bill last week after Republicans raised objections over non-war related appropriations.
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