On the September 22 edition of National Public Radio's (NPR) Weekend Edition Saturday, Washington Post diplomatic correspondent Robin Wright characterized the Senate Republicans' blocking of an amendment sponsored by Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA), which would require that U.S. troops receive home leave time equal to their most recent combat deployment, as having been “defeated decisively.” In fact, 56 senators -- including all Democratic members -- voted in favor of the measure, while 44 senators -- all Republicans and Independent Joseph I. Lieberman (CT) -- voted against.

Under a Republican proposal agreed to by the Senate leadership, which combined the cloture vote and the vote on final passage, the Webb amendment needed 60 votes to pass.

From the September 22 edition of NPR's Weekend Edition Saturday:

SCOTT SIMON (host): The Webb amendment that would limit time soldiers could serve in Iraq was the Democrats' latest attempt to try and get some Iraqi legislation passed. There's six months until the next report on Iraqi policy. How -- in the presidential campaign season, how do the Democrats -- what do they do next? What do they say to those voters who say you would change things?

WRIGHT: Well, the Democrats discovered that September is, in fact, not the month to try to make any kind of political gain on Iraq. There were great expectations that there would be divisions, that moderate Republicans might be willing to side with some of the Democrats. But instead you saw three measures: on allowing equal time for the troops to be at home as to be overseas, on the timing of a potential withdrawal next summer, and cutting off funding again next summer. All three of them defeated decisively. That there is not the kind of momentum yet -- it looks like President Bush, at least short-term, has managed to buy some time. But it's also clear that it's going to be a very divisive six months.

In addition to Webb's amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, Democratic senators offered two other amendments that would have limited the U.S. military presence in Iraq. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) sponsored an amendment that would have required President Bush to begin to “safely redeploy U.S. troops in Iraq” beginning no “later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.” Twenty-eight senators, 27 Democrats and Independent Bernie Sanders (VT), voted in support of the measure, while 70 senators voted against. Two senators did not vote.

Sen. Carl Levin's (D-MI) amendment to “provide for a reduction and transition of Unites States forces in Iraq,” also did not pass. Levin's amendment would have required “the reduction of the number of United States forces in Iraq” to begin “not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.” The amendment would have also mandated a “limited presence after” the troop “reduction” and a narrower mission for U.S. soldiers still remaining in Iraq. Forty-seven senators voted in favor of Levin's amendment, while 47 senators voted in opposition. Six senators abstained.

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