Congress approves $2.9 trillion budget plan

WASHINGTON — Congress approved a $2.9 trillion budget plan Thursday that promises big spending increases for Democratic Party priorities such as education and health care.

The budget blueprint sets a course to produce a small surplus in five years by assuming that many of President Bush's tax cuts would expire. Putting the budget framework in place also sets up veto confrontations with Bush over increases for domestic programs.

The nonbinding measure for the budget year that begins Oct. 1 does not go to Bush. Rather, it sets parameters for Congress to follow when writing legislation this year.

The House passed the measure by a 214-209 vote without a single Republican voting for it. The Senate quickly followed on a 52-40 vote; moderate Republicans Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine joined with Democrats.

House passes defense bill

The House passed a $646 billion defense bill Thursday that backs the Pentagon's ambitious weapons-acquisition program but would place new limits on foreign-made technology the military could buy.

The measure, approved 397-27, covers defense spending for the 2008 budget year, which begins Oct. 1. The money is separate from the $124 billion supplemental-funding bill now before Congress that would fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. That legislation is stalled over President Bush's objections to language proposing withdrawing troops from Iraq.

The bill passed Thursday has no mention of troop withdrawals but nonetheless has drawn a veto threat from the White House because of its "Buy American" provisions. In a statement, it said the House bill would "jeopardize our military readiness when our objective should be to enhance our ability to get the best capability for the warfighter at the best value for the taxpayer."

The Senate Armed Services Committee is expected to complete its version of the legislation next week.

Immunity sought in Plame leak

Attorneys for Vice President Dick Cheney and other top officials told a federal judge Thursday they cannot be held liable for anything they disclosed to reporters about covert CIA agent Valerie Plame or her husband, former Ambassador Joe Wilson.

The officials, who include senior White House adviser Karl Rove and Cheney's former chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, argued that the judge should dismiss a lawsuit filed by Wilson that stemmed from the disclosure of Plame's identity to the media.

The suit claims that Cheney, Libby, Rove and former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage violated the couple's privacy and constitutional rights by publicly revealing Plame's identity in an effort to retaliate against Wilson. Plame's identity was disclosed in a syndicated column in July 2003, days after Wilson publicly accused the Bush administration of twisting intelligence to exaggerate Iraq's nuclear threat and justify an attack.

Seattle Times news services