This morning the Senate voted on two versions of an interim Iraq funding bill - and neither one got the 60 votes needed.

The Republican version, which gave Bush $70B with no strings attached, failed 45-53. The Democratic version, which gave Bush $50B but required troops be home by 12/15/08 - and outlawed torture by the CIA - failed 53-45.

Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi said if this bill failed, Democrats would not consider another funding bill until January.

So now Defense Secretary Robert Gates is declaring war on... Congress.

"There is a misperception that this department can continue funding our troops in the field for an indefinite period of time through accounting maneuvers, that we can shuffle money around the department. This is a serious misconception," Gates told reporters at the Pentagon.

And to force Congress to give him more money, Gates is resorting to blackmail against Members of Congress who have military bases in their districts:

he said he is faced with the undesirable task of preparing to cease operations at Army bases by mid-February, and lay off about 100,000 defense department employees and an equal number of civilian contractors. A month later, he said, similar moves would have to be made by the Marines.

Gates expects us to believe that the $40B increase included in last week's record $471B Pentagon budget isn't enough to fund Iraq operations for two months?

The Bush Administration has lied about every penny it has spent in every department since 2001.

Congress needs to call Gates' bluff by calling him to testify under oath.

Update 1: Associated Propaganda stenographer Anne Flaherty outrageously says the delayed funds will cause an "accounting nightmare." Soldiers who are fighting and dying in Iraq are having real nightmares, and when they develop PTSD those nightmares are terrifying and debilitating. I guarantee no clerk in the Pentagon is going to have a single nightmare over fund accounting between now and passage of a final bill. Share your outrage with aflaherty@ap.org

Here's what I wrote:

Dear Ms. Flaherty,

I am appalled and outraged at your use of the phrase "accounting nightmare" to refer to the Pentagon's budget planning.

At a time when tens of thousands of soldiers and Iraq War veterans are suffering from the real nightmares of PTSD, the idea that clerks in the Pentagon are suffering in any comparable way is outrageous.

I demand that you cease using the phrase, which shows utter contempt for the suffering of our troops.