My War Will Go On

The Democratic Congress is ducking a fight over Iraq withdrawal and working on a watered-down war funding bill.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi will present a plan to House Democrats for a war funding bill that won't include a timeline for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq but will feature benchmarks with consequences, according to Democratic leadership aides.

The bill also would raise the minimum wage to $7.25 per hour from $5.15 per hour, and fund other domestic spending programs, which were still being negotiated.

… Leadership aides said the benchmarks would be tied to Iraq reconstruction aid and would require President Bush to present to Congress 18 reports before August.

Great plan: The White House may not answer the subpoenas coming out of Congress, but it'll surely file 18 timely reports.

Over at RedState, Mark I (not be confused with Deep Purple Mark I, the soulful artists who gave the world "Hush") is ready to declare victory over the real enemies: Nancy Pelosi, anonymous Democratic sources, and some birds.