President George W Bush piled pressure on Democrats today to approve $100 billion to fund the Iraq war without attaching a troop pullout timetable, while Democrats called on him to compromise.
In his weekly radio address, Bush again attacked Democrats in control of the US Congress for not approving legislation he can sign to allocate the money, saying the resulting delay could lead to longer tours of duty for troops in Iraq.
"The bottom line is that Congress' failure to fund our troops will mean that some of our military families could wait longer for their loved ones to return from the front lines," Mr Bush said.
Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean, who battled for his party's presidential nomination in 2004, said it was time for Bush to end his "my way or the highway" rhetoric and respect voters who elected Democrats based on their opposition to the Iraq war.
"It is time for the president and Republicans in Congress to stop trying to bully their way through this and work with Democrats to end the war. It's time for the president to show respect to the American people, who voted overwhelmingly to leave Iraq," Mr Dean said.
It was the latest in a daily crossfire over Iraq war funding that seems likely to last weeks if not months.
The House of Representatives and the Senate narrowly approved funding bills last month with variations on a pullout timetable next year and will need to reconcile their versions into one bill they would send to Mr Bush.
He has vowed to veto it and force Democrats to send him a version he can sign, the most high profile case of political brinksmanship since former President Bill Clinton refused to sign a Republican-backed budget plan in 1995 that forced a government shutdown until Republicans reluctantly backed down.
White House officials believe the public will side with the president even though he is politically weakened and has little credibility on Iraq.
Democrats believe they have the upper hand because congressional elections last November that catapulted them to power were seen as a referendum on the Iraq war.
Stephen Hess, a professor of media and public affairs at George Washington University in Washington, said he could see a scenario in which Democrats will ultimately have to compromise because Americans will want to support the troops.
"Assuming that neither side overplays its hand, in the game of scissors cuts paper, support the troops cuts Iraq dateline," Hess said.
Democrats said it is the troops they are most concerned about. "Together as Americans we have to stand up for our troops. The best way to do that is to get them out of the middle of a civil war in Iraq," Dean said.