Non-Partisan Budget Experts Confirm Bush is Misleading Public on War Funding Needs

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made the following statement upon receipt of a Congressional Research Service (CRS) analysis of the Army's ability to finance its
operational needs with existing funds well beyond the April 15th date asserted by President Bush.

In a thorough review of Army data and the Defense Department's existing legal authorities, non-partisan budget experts at CRS informed the Congress that the Army could maintain its wartime operations well into July 2007 with funds the Army has already been provided.

"This study confirms that the President is once again attempting to mislead the public and create an artificial atmosphere of anxiety. He is using scare tactics to defeat bipartisan legislation that would change course in Iraq. After waiting months for this Administration to send us its funding requests, both houses of Congress worked quickly to pass the emergency supplemental bill for our troops. Congress has acted in good faith and will send the President a conference report for his signature well ahead of the July 2007 date CRS identified. If the President vetoes this bill, he is making the choice to continue down the same failed path in Iraq.

"Instead of holding press events to score political points, I call upon the President to tone down his rhetoric, stop the veto threats of a bill he has not yet seen, and sit down with the congressional leadership to discuss how our two co-equal branches of government can get an emergency spending bill passed that funds our troops and makes America more secure."

Veto-boy