Robert Gates, US defence secretary, on Wednesday urged Congress to reject a proposal to approve short-term funding for the Iraq war, saying it would cause “huge” disruption to the Pentagon.
Democrats are crafting legislation that would fund combat operations for the next several months but require another vote in July to approve further funding. The White House has threatened to veto the measure.
“A ‘No’ vote in July would have dramatic consequences. The bill asks me to run the department of defence like a skiff, and I’m trying to drive the biggest supertanker in the world,” said Mr Gates. “We just don’t have the agility to be able to manage a two-month appropriation very well.”
Appearing before the Senate appropriations committee, Mr Gates warned that he might have to shut down parts of the Pentagon over the summer because of a lack of funds to pay salaries.
David Obey, Democratic committee chairman, said the Democrats’ new bill – the previous measure, which included a timetable for troop withdrawals, was vetoed – would give Mr Bush two more months to show there was “a prayer his plan can succeed”. But John Boehner, House minority leader, said Republicans would not support “rationing” war funds.
Signalling to Congress that time was running out, Mr Gates said the Pentagon was already redirecting money from the air force and navy to fund army and marine operations in Iraq.
He said the Iraqi government had fulfilled its promise to provide more Iraqi troops to support the US-led “surge”, although he warned that the picture on violence was “mixed”. General David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, and Ryan Crocker, US ambassador to Baghdad, are expected to provide a key progress report in September.
“We’re not going to get the level of violence down to zero,” said Mr Gates. “The question is whether the level of violence is such that the political process can go forward in Iraq. And that then sets the stage for us to begin drawing down our troops.”
Mr Gates also said there remained a need for a White House war tsar to assist Stephen Hadley, the national security adviser, although he said it would be a “challenge” to find somebody with only 20 months left in the administration. “I sort of think of it as a 911 [emergency number] for Petraeus and Crocker,” he said.
