After All-Night Debate, Senate Rejects
Measure to Bring Troops Home From Iraq

WASHINGTON  —  The Senate rejected a plan Wednesday to bring home U.S. troops from Iraq by early next year after spending an all-night session debating whether to demand President Bush change the mission.

The 52-47 vote fell short of the 60 votes needed to cut off debate and move toward passage. Four Republicans voted with the Democrats, ...

Connecticut independent Sen. Joe Lieberman voted against the troop withdrawal plan. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who strongly supports the withdrawal approach, voted no as a technical move that allows him, under Senate rules, to bring the troop withdrawal plan back to a vote at a later date. ...

Below the fold:

• Senate Democrats Lack Support From G.O.P. on Pullout

See also:

• Defeatocrats Desperate To Lose Despite US Success
• Dems want to surrender what the troops are winning
• Worst. Congress. Ever.
  Don Surber: The new Reuters poll is out and Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have pulled an upset: They have managed to make George Walker Bush twice as popular as Congress. ...
• US Captures Top AQI Figure
• U.S.: Bin Laden's Iraq go-between caught
• A Big Catch in Iraq
• About Last Night
  John Hinderaker:  In my view, the most noteworthy event that took place in Washington yesterday was Vets For Freedom's appearance at the Capitol to argue for victory in Iraq. Others apparently didn't share that opinion, however. The Washington Post made no mention of VFF in today's paper. One might have thought that the Minneapolis Star Tribune would be interested, since Lt. Pete Hegseth, the group's executive director, is a Minnesotan. No article there, either. And the Associated Press didn't do a story. We got a transcript of the press conference in which Lt. Hegseth participated. Here are his remarks:
• 'I Will Stand Where I Stand'
  Ed Morrissey: Harry Reid wanted a debate, and he got one, especially from John McCain, during last night's stunt -- which Reid himself mostly skipped. It didn't change a single vote, and more importantly, Reid didn't get what he wanted -- a Republican refusal to engage. Instead, Republicans made it clear that they had no intention of allowing Congress to usurp the role of the executive, and McCain made it clear why. Here's his entire statement from the debate early this morning:
• Republicans Call Reid's Bluff
• The Senate slumber party–Open thread
  Update: 10:10pm Stunts and snoozes…now Lieberman speaks
  Update: Dems in the majority whine, “Let us vote”…
  11:54pm Menendez screams about “tyranny of the minority;” mocking Democrat placards
  Update: 12:30am Reid wants an 11:00am cloture vote, plus another procedural vote not to occur earlier than 5am
  Update: Snoozers and sparkplugs; Thune/Webb spar; Durbin’s toothpaste stunt
• Senate in round-the-clock Iraq debate
• Harry Reid- I'm surrendering as fast as I can

Senate Democrats Lack Support From G.O.P. on Pullout
Carl Hulse

WASHINGTON, July 17 — A handful of Republicans who have distanced themselves from President Bush on the war in Iraq refused Tuesday to back a plan to withdraw American troops from the conflict, leaving Senate Democrats short of the support needed to force a vote on their proposal.

As the Senate headed into an all-night session complete with cots in Capitol meeting rooms and an antiwar vigil across the street, some Republicans who have gone public with their complaints about the war strategy also weighed in against the Democratic withdrawal plan as ill advised and driven mainly by partisan considerations. ...