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Mammoth Spending Bill Passes House
Bush pleased with spending levels, could veto over Iraq
By Rob Quinn
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Posted Dec 18, 07 4:37 AM CST
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(Newser)
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After months of wrangling over details, the House has passed a huge $515.7 billion domestic spending bill, the Washington Post reports. Lawmakers finally managed to hammer out a compromise that makes just about nobody happy. Conservatives and interest groups of all sides blasted the bill, and even Democrats could summon only mild enthusiasm at best.
The measure shaves billions from levels the Dems had hoped for, but also challenges White House demands. It covers funding for all agencies except the Defense Department. An amendment approved $31 billion for Afghanistan but there's likely to be a showdown over money for Iraq. President Bush said he was pleased with the spending level, but he has threatened to torpedo the whole bill if he doesn't get Iraq funding with no strings attached.