Senate sets stage for children's health fight

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday sent President Bush a $35 billion expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program, setting up the biggest domestic-policy clash of his presidency and starting a fight that will reverberate into the 2008 elections.

Bush has vowed to veto the measure, which would be paid for by a 61-cent increase in the federal excise tax on a pack of cigarettes, but he has faced strong criticism from many fellow Republicans reluctant to turn away from a popular measure that would renew and expand an effective program aimed at low-income children.

Democratic leaders, while up to 24 votes short in the House, are campaigning hard for the first override of Bush's presidency.

They secured a veto-proof majority Thursday night in the Senate, with the 67-29 tally including "yes" votes from 18 of the 49 Republicans, including some of the president's most stalwart allies, such as Kit Bond, R-Mo.; Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas; and Ted Stevens, R-Alaska.

Analysts projected the legislation would allow about 4 million of the estimated 9 million uninsured children in the United States to gain coverage.

After the Senate vote, a White House official said Bush "will veto this bill because it directs scarce funding to higher incomes at the expense of poor families."

Defense chief backs faster Army growth

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday he intends to approve a $2.8 billion plan to accelerate the Army's growth by 74,000 soldiers during the next four years, even as the Army's top official suggested the need for support troops in Iraq could grow — rather than decrease — as limited drawdowns of combat forces begin.

"The issue is, if the brigades come down, will the soldiers outside the brigades go up? If so, how much?" Army Secretary Pete Geren said Thursday. "As the mission shifts more to training, more to supporting, what will be the requirements in those areas?"

At a Pentagon briefing, Gates said he favors the Army's new proposal to accelerate its growth. But he stressed that the plan must not lower standards. Instead, he said, he wants the Army to reverse a decline in the percentage of high-school graduates it recruits and to "begin to move back toward the high standards of not too many months ago."

Also

Spending measure: The Senate on Thursday passed by a 94-1 vote and sent to President Bush a temporary spending measure to keep the federal government running through Nov. 16, giving Democrats and Republicans time to work out budget disagreements. The legislation, which Bush is expected to sign, is needed because Congress failed to complete any of the 12 regular spending bills to fund government programs beginning Monday.

Subpoena fight: Rep. John Doolittle, R-Calif., indicated Thursday he planned to fight a Justice Department subpoena for 11 years of records as part of the Jack Abramoff bribery investigation.

Seattle Times news services