WASHINGTON — Senate Democratic leaders abandoned plans for a test vote Tuesday on authorizing the U.S. military operation against Libya as Republicans insisted they should instead focus on government spending and the nation’s borrowing limit.
Just hours before the vote, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., announced the change in plans, leaving the fate of the resolution in doubt. One after another, GOP senators had stood on the Senate floor and signaled they would oppose any effort to move ahead on the Libya measure, arguing that dealing with the debt was far more important than working on a resolution with no practical impact.
The Senate had already canceled this week’s recess to deal with the financial issue.
“No real work is scheduled in the Senate this week on the budget, nor is any on the debt ceiling,” said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. “Instead, we are moving today to a Libya resolution. This resolution, not requested by the president, is not why we asked to cancel recess.”
At least five Republican senators indicated they would oppose the vote.
Congress was already sending a muddled message on Libya to both U.S. allies and Moammar Gadhafi.
Bipartisan Senate support for giving President Barack Obama limited authority to continue military involvement against Gadhafi was at odds with overwhelming opposition in the House to the commander in chief’s actions. Democrats as well as Republicans in the House have criticized Obama for failing to seek congressional consent for the operation in a constitutional stalemate that has dragged on for weeks.
Leading backers of the Senate resolution include Foreign Relations Committee chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., and John McCain of Arizona, the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee. They have been the strongest voices in the Senate for the military action against Gadhafi’s forces.
McCain said he understood the reason for the Senate delay but hoped lawmakers would return to the resolution next week. Kerry said he hoped the Senate would resume work on it quickly.
