Cheney calls Reid defeatist

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WASHINGTON — Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday blasted Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, calling him a defeatist and accusing him of exploiting the Iraq war for political gain.

Reid in response said he was not “going to get into a name-calling match with the (Bush) administration’s chief attack dog.”

The harsh exchange underscored the intensity of the debate between the Bush administration and Democratic leaders in Congress over a $124 billion funding bill for U.S. troops.

It came after President Bush said he would veto the latest war spending bill taking shape in Congress that includes a timetable for withdrawing from Iraq.

The $124.2 billion legislation would continue to fund the war in Iraq but also would require that troops begin pulling out by Oct. 1 — or earlier if the Iraqi government does not make progress in reducing sectarian violence and forging political agreements.

The bill ultimately sets a goal for combat operations to end by April 1, 2008.

“It’s a good piece of legislation,” Reid said. “I would hope the president would stop being so brusque and waving it off. This is a bill that is good for the troops. It’s good for the country.”

Cheney took the unusual step of talking to reporters after having lunch in the Capitol with Senate Republicans.

He said he decided to speak because he felt strongly about Reid’s speech Monday at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

In that speech, Reid referred to Cheney as an “attack dog” for the first time and said Congress would show Bush the way out of Iraq.

The vice president said Reid’s speech was “unfortunate … uninformed and misleading.”

“What’s most troubling about Senator Reid’s comments is his defeatism,” Cheney said.

“Indeed, last week he said the war is already lost. And the timetable legislation (for withdrawal of U.S. troops) that he is now pursuing would guarantee defeat,” the vice president said.

Cheney also cited Reid’s comments earlier this month predicting Democrats would gain seats in the 2008 election because of the Iraq war.

“It is cynical to declare that the war is lost because you believe it gives you political advantage,” Cheney said. “Leaders should make decisions based on the security interests of our country, not on the interests of their political party.”

Cheney also attacked Reid for changing his position on the war.

“In less than six months’ time, Senator Reid has gone from pledging full funding for the military, then full funding but with conditions, and then a cutoff of funding — three positions in five months on the most important foreign policy question facing the nation and our troops,” Cheney said.

Reid’s statement that the troop surge in Iraq went against recommendations of the Iraq Study Group was “plainly false,” Cheney said.

Cheney also ridiculed Reid for calling for a regional conference on Iraq. “Apparently, he doesn’t know that there is going to be one next week,” Cheney said.

Reid, who spoke to reporters after Cheney left, dismissed the criticism as coming from “somebody who is at 9 percent approval rating.”

The senator urged President Bush to carefully review the latest version of the war bill approved by congressional negotiators on Monday.

“But the president, who has for six years not had to deal with this pesky little thing we have in the Constitution called the legislative branch of government, has to get used to us,” Reid said.

Later, Reid’s spokesman issued a statement expanding on the Nevadan’s remarks.

“Vice President Cheney should be the last person to lecture anyone on how leaders should make decisions,” spokesman Jim Manley said. “Leaders should make decisions based on facts and reality, two words that seem to be foreign to the vice president.”

Bush said U.S. troops should not be caught in the middle of a showdown between the White House and Congress.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.