Salazar, Udall among group pressuring Bush on Iraq

Chris Barge, Rocky Mountain News

Published June 6, 2007 at midnight

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U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Denver, and Rep. Mark Udall, D-Eldorado Springs, were among a bipartisan group of congressmen today that introduced identical bills in each house that would force President Bush to implement the recommendations made months ago by the bipartisan Iraq Study Group.

"The American people expect us to find a solution to the situation in Iraq," Salazar said. "This legislation sets us on the right track diplomatically, economically and militarily to do so."

The bills would require Bush to include the cost of the war in his annual budget request. The bills also would set conditions that could lead to redeployment of U.S. troops as early as the first quarter of 2008, as long as security, diplomatic and infrastructure benchmarks are met.

"As a piece of legislation it’s a message about the sentiments in the House," Udall said. "I think it ushers in a new era about where we go next."

Reps. Ed Perlmutter, D-Golden, and Diana DeGette, D-Denver, have also introduced a bill calling for redeployment of all National Guard troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan within 90 days of the bill’s enactment.

They reason that the Guard is needed more at home than overseas to handle natural disasters and combat domestic terror.

DeGette also intends to co-sponsor two other bills aimed at ending the war and bringing the troops home. One would revoke Bush's authorization to use military force in Iraq and require the Secretary of Defense to submit plans for a phased redeployment of troops. The other would require Bush to redeploy all troops by June 30, 2008.

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