Washington, D.C. -- The U.S. House today voted overwhelmingly to approve the first bipartisan bill aimed at ending the war in Iraq. The bill was authored by U.S. Representatives Neil Abercrombie and John Tanner (TN).

By a vote of 377 to 46, the House passed the legislation which has broken a legislative stalemate that has blocked repeated attempts to advance bills to begin the redeployment of U.S. troops from the streets of Baghdad.

Speaking on the House floor, Abercrombie said the bill will bring home U.S. troops from the war “in a responsible way, in a bipartisan manner” and enable Congress to “take back its responsibility” for oversight of the Iraq war.

“Republicans alone, Democrats alone, cannot bring this to an end. It requires us all to work together,” said Abercrombie, a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee.

“We want to end the party sniping; we want to end the commentary about advantages by one party or another. ‘Cover’ has talked about for one party or another. The only cover we’re interested in is the cover needed by our fighting men and women in the field because they’re in battle as the result of policies that we either approve or disapprove.”

The bipartisan bill requires the Department of Defense, within 60 days, to report to congressional defense committees on planning for redeployment from Iraq, with updated reports every 90 days thereafter. The bill requires the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to brief the House and Senate defense committees.

“You can not redeploy 160,000 troops by wishing alone. You have to have the practical realities in front of you.  That’s what we’re seeking to do; that’s what the Armed Services Committee on a bipartisan basis sought to accomplish with this bill,” said Abercrombie, who also chairs the Armed Services Subcommittee on Air and Land Forces.

“The status of the planning will include the transition of combat forces from policing civil strife or sectarian violence in Iraq.  It has to include a projection of the number of the members of the armed forces required for the missions described in the redeployment. The details in these redeployment plans are included in the bill.”

The bill states that contingency planning for a redeployment of U.S. Armed Forces from Iraq should address:

• Ensuring appropriate protection for the U.S. Armed Forces in Iraq;
• Providing appropriate protection in Iraq for U.S. civilians, contractors, third party nationals, and Iraqi nationals who have assisted the U.S. mission in Iraq;
• Maintaining and enhancing the ability of the U.S. government to eliminate and disrupt Al Qaeda and affiliated terrorist organizations; and
• Preserving military equipment necessary to defend the national security interests of the United States.

“It is most important for us all to keep in mind that our troops are bearing the brunt of the policies we approve of in this body.” said Abercrombie.

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