Senate Iraq Debate: RIP (for now)

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One commenter to an earlier post wants to know where things stand with the debate over the Senate Iraq resolution. Good question. Here’s the read I get from Harry Reid’s office:

Absent what a Reid aide calls “a stunning turn of events,” it’s over for the time being, although the House expects to take it up next week. This, of course, will be nothing more than a gesture, absent Senate action (and given the non-binding nature of the resolution, you could argue it was a gesture anyway).

If there is any chance at all for the Senate to express disapproval of the Iraq troop buildup, it now looks as though it will have to happen as an amendment to another bill. The two most likely “amendable vehicles” on the horizon are either the President’s request for supplemental Iraq funding, which is anticipated some time in March, or a bill that would implement the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, now expected to reach the Senate floor in late February.

One note of cosmic irony: that 9/11 Commission bill is authored largely by Joe Lieberman.