US:Senate Democrats and a leading Republican war critic have drafted a resolution condemning President George Bush's troop build-up in Iraq as contrary to the American national interest.
Nebraska Republican Chuck Hagel joined Democrats in backing the non-binding resolution, which says the US's military commitment in Iraq can only be sustained with popular support among the American public.
"I will do everything I can to stop the president's policy as he outlined it Wednesday night. I think it is dangerously irresponsible," he said.
Mr Bush yesterday met Republicans on the Senate foreign relations committee in an effort to prevent an embarrassing vote against his strategy. Up to 10 Republican senators are considering supporting the resolution, but White House spokesman Tony Snow said the president would press ahead with the troop build-up regardless of the vote.
"The president has obligations as a commander in chief. And he will go ahead and execute them," he said.
Most Democrats are expected to vote for the non-binding resolution but they are divided on a series of more forceful proposals that would bind the president's hands on troop deployment.
Pennsylvania congressman John Murtha plans to use an upcoming spending Bill to place limitations on the administration's conduct of the war.
The Bill could include language that would limit the length and number of troop deployments, require certain training guidelines to be met before troops are sent to Iraq and close the Guantánamo Bay detention centre.
Another Democratic congressman, Oregon's Peter DeFazio, is proposing a resolution saying Mr Bush should not initiate military action against Iran without first obtaining authorisation from Congress.
Senator Hillary Clinton yesterday stepped up her opposition to the president's plan to send more than 20,000 new troops to Iraq, describing it as "a losing strategy". Speaking after a weekend visit to Iraq and Afghanistan, Mrs Clinton called for capping the number of American forces in Iraq to the total number there on January 1st this year.
"I'm for redeploying our troops out of Baghdad and eventually out of Iraq so we can make sure that they're not in the midst of a civil war," she said.
Mrs Clinton said that sectarian violence would continue in Iraq regardless of whether the number of US troops increased or decreased, because the Iraqi government was not committed to the mission. "They're waiting us out. They intend to do everything they can to impose a particular brand of dominance over the Sunnis, and there's no reason for the Sunni insurgency, therefore, to stop," she said.
Mrs Clinton, who is expected to join the 2008 presidential race in the next few days, sidestepped a question about the qualifications of Illinois senator Barack Obama, who took the first step towards running for president this week. "I'm looking forward to a spirited and substantive debate about issues, about goals, about aspirations, about experience, about the kinds of things that voters will be interested in," she said.