John Cornyn: “3 months ago, the President of the United States asked Congress to pass an emergency war spending bill that would…”

“3 months ago, the President of the United States asked Congress to pass an emergency war spending bill that would provide our brave men and women in uniform with the funds and the flexibility they need to succeed in what has been called the central front on the war against al-Qaida in Iraq. Instead, this body helped pass a bill that substitutes the opinions of politicians for the judgment of our military commanders. The bill Congress passed was, in my view, unacceptable, and late. Eighty-five days after the President had requested the funds on an emergency basis, Speaker Pelosi finally forwarded the bill to the President yesterday. It was no surprise that the President vetoed the bill within hours because he had said he would, and so the outcome was predictable. The President, in his address to the Nation last night, made it very clear that it remains his desire to work with Congress to resolve this matter as quickly and expeditiously as possible. Today, he is holding a bipartisan meeting with congressional leaders at the White House for that purpose. We have known for weeks that this legislation was flawed and that we would find ourselves in this place--a bill that included a surrender date, when we tell our enemies we would simply give up, and one larded with porkbarrel spending in order to secure the votes of recalcitrant Members who were unwilling to vote for this flawed bill on its merits. The President outlined these shortcomings last night.”