Allah notes that the bill’s intention wasn’t an honest attempt to give troops more time with their family, but to actually force the President to lower troop levels. Luckily, the defeatist measure was blocked.

Democrats’ efforts to challenge President Bush’s Iraq policies were dealt a demoralizing blow Wednesday in the Senate after they failed to scrape together enough support to guarantee troops more time at home.

The 56-44 vote — four short of reaching the 60 needed to advance — all but assured that Democrats would be unable to muster the support needed to pass tough anti-war legislation by year’s end. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., was seen as the Democrats’ best shot because of its pro-military premise.

The problem being, of course, that it wasn’t really “pro-military”, but a mask as pro-military that’s actually pro-retreat. Congress wants pro-military? Don’t hold its funding hostage in the hopes that you’ll be able to gain advantage for your agenda.

By the way, this is good news:

Regardless of what’s happening in terms of recruitment, soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines already serving are reenlisting at rates that surpass all expectations, according to defense officials.

Defense Department statistics for June, released yesterday, showed the Army missed its active-duty recruiting goal for the second consecutive month. Yet retention remained high across the board, 101 percent of goal for the active Army, 119 percent for the Army Reserve, and 107 percent for the Army National Guard, Maj. Anne Edgecomb, an Army spokeswoman, told American Forces Press Service.

…

Of particular interest, he said, are high retention rates among troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

See, Democrats, troops believe in this little thing called “winning”, and not surrendering to terrorists. I know, sounds strange, but they have this whole thing against terrorists gaining a strong-hold in a nation that 3,000 of their fellow soldiers died trying to secure.

H/t DrewM.