House of Representatives fails to overturn veto on Iraq bill

The U.S. House of Representatives has failed to overturn the veto that President George W. Bush had imposed on a spending bill for the Iraq war. The bill would have set a timetable for pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq.

Bush declined to sign it into force, saying that a fixed date for withdrawal plays into the hands of militants fighting for control in Iraq.

Deputies opposed to Bush's Iraq strategy – most of them from the Democratic Party – failed to reach the two-thirds majority necessary to override the President's decision.

Meanwhile, talks between congressional leaders from both parties and the President are underway in an effort to resolve the standoff.