WASHINGTON — A Republican-controlled Senate committee dealt a blow to President Bush's national security agenda Thursday, approving a bill that would expand the legal rights of terrorism detainees.
The rebuke capped a day of bruising political combat in which Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) released a letter from Colin L. Powell, the president's former secretary of State, opposing Bush's proposal to allow more extreme methods of interrogation.
"The world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of our fight against terrorism," Powell said, adding that Bush's proposal "would put our own troops at risk."
The Senate Armed Services Committee approved McCain's bill, 15 to 9. The panel's 11 Democrats joined four Republicans -- McCain, Chairman John W. Warner of Virginia, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Susan Collins of Maine -- to recommend that the full Senate adopt the bill. All the "no" votes were cast by Republicans.
The focus of the fight is Common Article 3 of the Geneva Convention, which establishes basic protections that must be offered to all combatants -- whether they are terrorists, warring tribes, insurgents or any other kind of irregular fighter.
The administration's bill would reinterpret that article to provide the same protections as those in the U.S. Constitution. The administration contends Common Article 3, which outlaws torture as well as "affronts to personal dignity," is too vague.
White House spokesman Tony Snow said Thursday that the administration was not trying to amend the Geneva Convention, but to "clarify" it. "No, we're not trying to change anything," Snow said. "We're trying to figure out what it means."
Powell's broad criticism of Bush's approach to terrorism surprised many in Washington.
And the rebuff to the White House by the Senate Armed Services Committee was a remarkable setback for Bush, who had seemed to be strengthening his political position in debate over national security policy.
Over the last week, the president had thrown Democrats on the defensive with a series of hard-hitting speeches on terrorism as his allies tried to cast doubt about whether Democrats were tough enough to meet the threat. A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released Thursday showed that Bush's overall approval rating and marks on handling the war in Iraq had risen modestly.
But Thursday began with the president heading to Capitol Hill to rally his GOP troops and ended with the military tribunal fight that pitted Bush against senior members of his own party and against Powell.
