Word: capitol
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Even in jest, that kind of talk helps explain why the Pentagon bosses were in big trouble on Capitol Hill until the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait rescued them and their budget. Before Iraq attacked its neighbor, Congress was considering very large cuts in defense spending while Cheney was proposing annual reductions of only 2%. Members of Congress were deep in discussions of the peace dividend -- money that could be saved from the $160 billion spent each < year to defend Western Europe from the Soviet Union, and diverted to domestic uses...
...over the budget a prolonged and ugly struggle. It had a harsh edge to the very end. Late Friday night the House chamber rang with boos and shouts as members postured and debated before finally voting 228-200 to approve the plan. On Saturday afternoon, Senators converged on the Capitol for an extraordinary session and quickly okayed the package...
...Cheney-Webster message was unmistakable: there may be no way out short of war. But a growing ambivalence pervades the enterprise nonetheless. The "wait a minute" second thoughts echoing on Capitol Hill -- a skittishness in marked contrast to the "let's get him" talk of several weeks ago -- reflects an increasing reluctance among the American public to start shooting...
Then there is Capitol Hill. The pace of modern warfare has rendered declarations of war obsolete, and the War Powers Act of 1973 has become a virtual dead letter. Every President since its passage has denounced it as an unconstitutional infringement on his powers as Commander in Chief, and the courts have refused to enforce its key provision, which requires the President within 60 days to pull U.S. forces out of any situation in which hostilities seem imminent unless the legislature votes to let them stay...
...weaknesses of the War Powers Act is that it fails to specify who should be consulted or exactly when (Ronald Reagan informed Capitol Hill leaders of the impending U.S. air strike on Libya in 1986 only after the bombers were in the air and nearing their targets). Nunn would remedy that by setting up a bipartisan group that the President would be required to consult with regularly, including times when Congress is not in session. That provision could be important; the most widely repeated war scenario on the Washington rumor circuit calls for fighting to begin in mid-November -- during...