Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada disputed that. "Five years of war, the president's current approach in Iraq is not working. The country is closer to chaos than stability. US troops are policing a civil war, not hunting and killing the terrorists who attacked America on 9/11."

While the Democratic defeat was preordained, New York Sen. Charles Schumer of New York, who heads his party's campaign committee, suggested a political motive for the decision to go ahead with the vote.

Republicans, he said, "are caught ... between the president who sticks to this policy and their constituencies, who know this policy is wrong."

Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon was the only Republican to support the measure. Democrats Mark Pryor of Arkansas and Ben Nelson of Nebraska opposed it, as did Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, an independent Democrat.

For their part, Republicans sought to create a political dilemma for Democrats, countering with an alternative measure that said "no funds should be cut off or reduced for American troops in the field" that would undermine their safety.

GOP leaders hoped the proposal, advanced by Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, would prove difficult for Democrats to oppose and complicate any future effort to reduce funds for the war.

Gregg's amendment passed 82-16.

Democrats tried still another proposal, this one saying that Congress would provide "necessary funds for training equipment and other support for troops in the field." It passed easily, 96-2.

The House timetable was part of a spending bill that totals $124 billion, $95.5 billion of which is targeted for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Initially, Democrats had wanted to use the funding bill to prevent Bush from proceeding with his plans to increase troop strength by 21,000 as part of an effort to quell sectarian violence in the Baghdad area. That was scuttled after Republicans criticized it and moderate Democrats objected.

In its place was a requirement for troops to receive proper training, equipment and rest, although Bush is permitted to waive those provisions.

The balance of the funds in the House measure would be distributed among domestic programs that Democrats wanted to highlight - health care for veterans and low-income children, aid to agriculture and more.

Republicans said that was a thinly disguised attempt to win support from reluctant Democrats. "Attention Kmart shoppers. ... Whether you be a spinach farmer or a salmon fisher ... there's something in there for you," taunted Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Ky.

Rep. David Obey , D-Wis., chairman of the committee, defended the billions of dollars for agricultural assistance, contending that many farmers are in difficult financial circumstances because of conditions beyond their control.

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