WASHINGTON -- The Oct. 4 target date for the adjournment of Congress is fast approaching. The top priority for President George W. Bush is to convince Congress to give him some form of support for his crusade against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
What will happen? Well, let's turn that upside down. Whatever the president asks for on Iraq, he will get in some form. The Democrats will not vote against the president on such a hot foreign-policy issue. They do not agree with the priority he places on this matter. They do not believe that Iraq should be topic No. 1 on the international agenda, but they are not prepared to risk the adverse fallout if something bad happens at the hands of Hussein.
Whatever the president asks for will get stringent review from moderates from both sides of the aisle. There are wise heads on both sides who do not understand the bellicose nature of the president's Iraq policy and the urgency with which he is pressing for action. They will work together to bring common sense into whatever kind of measure the Senate is asked to consider. Then it will sail through with just a few dissenting votes.