Dems Expect To Open New Fronts Against Bush

by S-Q @9:05 PM MDT


House Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), have recently focused on the Iraq war, but the party is expecting to open new fronts against the president. Among the topics floated: closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and limiting some USA Patriot Act provisions. (By Melina Mara -- The Washington Post)

Washington Post

Even as their confrontation with President Bush over Iraq escalates, emboldened congressional Democrats are challenging the White House on a range of issues -- such as unionization of airport security workers and the loosening of presidential secrecy orders -- with even more dramatic showdowns coming soon.

For his part, Bush, who also finds himself under assault for the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, the conduct of the Iraq war and alleged abuses in government surveillance by the FBI, is holding firm. Though he has vetoed only one piece of legislation since taking office, he has vowed to veto 16 bills that have passed either the House or Senate in the three months since Democrats took control of Congress.

Despite the threats, Democratic lawmakers expect to open new fronts against the president when they return from their spring recess, including politically risky efforts to quickly close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; reinstate legal rights for terrorism suspects; and rein in what Democrats see as unwarranted encroachments on privacy and civil liberties allowed by the USA Patriot Act.