State lawmakers vote by party on Iraq bill

WASHINGTON — Washington state lawmakers were divided along party lines Friday as the House narrowly approved a bill requiring President Bush to bring combat troops home from Iraq next year.

All six House Democrats from Washington voted in favor of the bill, while the three Republicans voted against it.

"Our nation cannot and should not attempt to impose" a solution in Iraq indefinitely, said Rep. Brian Baird, D-Vancouver. "It must come from the Iraqis themselves."

Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Pasco, said the bill imposed unacceptable restrictions on U.S. troops.

"We have military leaders for a reason. Making ... members of Congress commanders in the field is a formula for failure, one which I am deeply concerned will have long-term consequences for our security at home," he said.

Rep. Dave Reichert, R-Auburn, who was publicly undecided before the vote, voted against the bill.

"I could not support the bill because it contained arbitrary timelines for troop withdrawal," Reichert said Friday. "This bill became a political vote and funding the troops should never, ever be subject to political games."

Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Bainbridge Island, said the bill took strongest action possible to compel Iraqi leaders "to stop bickering and form a functioning government."

Inslee said he would have preferred an earlier date to end the war but said the bill "sets a concrete, enforceable timeline rather than continuing our open-ended commitment."