In Switch, Senate Takes Up Iraq Withdrawal Bill

ABC’s Z. Byron Wolf reports: Republicans abandoned their long-time tactic of thwarting Democratic attempts to hold up or down votes on withdrawing combat troops from Iraq today in the Senate.

Instead, Senate Republicans joined their Democratic counterparts this afternoon to consider a proposal by Democrat Russ Feingold and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid that would immediately begin to withdraw combat troops from Iraq and begin to cut funding for the war.

Last year, Republicans had opposed procedural cloture petitions by Democrats to debate Iraq proposals. While there is little danger that the Feingold proposal will ultimately pass, the switch shows Republicans are more comfortable with their position on Iraq, where the security situation has improved.

"It is our view, after considerable discussion is that since there has been so much improvement in the situation," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell after meeting with Republican Senators this afternoon. "When even the New York Times is writing frong page stories about how things have improved in Iraq, I think we can agree that things have improved in Iraq," he said.

As an added bonus for Republicans, the move will keep Democrats for the time being from moving to a controversial proposal to allow bankruptcy judges to unilaterally change mortgage terms for some families at risk of foreclosure. Its a debate Democrats had hoped to move to as worries about the economy, particularly the housing crisis, persist.

But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told reporters that he will use the debate on the Feingold proposal to highlight the detrimental effect he said the war is having on the economy.

"We have been there for five years, soon to be getting on the sixth year. It has cost the treasury of this country, as I’ve already indicated, almost $1 trillion," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. "I don’t know what would be a better time to bring this up than bring it up now, when we’re in the throes of an economic crisis that this country has seen very rarely."

Later on the Senate floor, he accused Republicans of employing their "usual stalling tactic." But instead of stalling on Iraq, he said they were stalling on the housing legislation.

McConnell said Reid was complaining about having a debate on the very issue that Reid scheduled a vote on (presumably Reid had assumed Republicans would oppose the debate).