The Netroots have not been all that happy with Congressional Democrats this year. Congress has challenged the president on Iraq, and considered 40 bills to force a course change. But ultimately Democratic leaders have backed down and given the president the funding needed to continue the Iraq mission. There’s been a little glimmer of hope on the left in recent days however, with promises from many Democrats that they will not approve more Iraq funding unless it compels the president to begin a withdrawal. That’s led to some hopeful comments at places like Talk Left, where they’ve endorsed Speaker Pelosi’s newfound backbone. HuffPo is complimenting Democrats for rejecting Iraq funding, and wondering how long their defiance of the president will continue. And at Comments from Left Field there’s satisfaction with the current stance, mixed with apprehension about what Democratic leaders may do in the near future. What Democratic leaders have been unwilling to discuss is that they’ve already done it. As we reported here a week ago, Democrats have passed a defense spending bill which they believe gives the president all the authority he needs to shift funds within defense accounts, allowing the war to continue for at least ‘the next few months.’ Roll Call covers the story today:
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