Democrats blink, but manage to get minimum wage passed

Democrats on Capitol Hill today have supposedly reached a compromise with Republicans that would fund (to the tune of $90 billion dollars) the Iraq war through September 30, 2007. The bill would drop any required "time lines," and would set benchmarks for Iraq that, if not met, would trigger a withholding of funding. None of that really matters though because the bill also gives George Bush the right to waive the requirements whenever he sees fit to do so.

On the flip side, the bill will also raise the national minimum wage from $5.15/hr to $7.25/hr. Funding for other domestic spending programs is still being negotiated.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi will present a plan to House Democrats for a war funding bill that won't include a timeline for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq but will feature benchmarks with consequences, according to Democratic leadership aides.

The bill also would raise the minimum wage to $7.25 per hour from $5.15 per hour, and fund other domestic spending programs, which were still being negotiated.

The maneuvering over the past several weeks has been a Democratic attempt to show their anti-war base that party leaders were trying until the 11th hour to stand up to the president, the source said.

Earlier: Democrats cave to Republicans