Washington – An Oklahoma senator’s attempt to strip the war funding bill of $100 million for security at the Democratic and Republican national conventions failed Wednesday.
Senators voted 51-45 against the amendment from Republican Sen. Tom Coburn that would have removed the funding for both the Denver and Minneapolis events.
Coburn criticized the fact that the convention spending was added to a bill that’s intended to cover emergencies. Spending in an emergency funding bill is exempted from Congress’ budget spending cap.
“You’re going to vote to ask your grandchildren to pay for a party you’re having now,” Coburn said, referring to the growing national deficit.
Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, a Democrat, defended the funding as an emergency because “the national convention is a national target for those who wish to do our nation harm.”
If Bush vetoes the bill, as he has promised, Salazar will work to keep it in the war spending bill that would come back to Congress, he said. There’s also another agency funding bill it could be added into, Salazar spokesman Cody Wertz said.
