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The American people "do not want disputes in Washington to undermine our troops in Iraq", Bush said after meeting with Defense Department officials at the Pentagon.

Bush challenged the Democratic Party-controlled Congress to give U.S. troops "what they need to succeed without strings and without delay."

The U.S. House of Representatives had approved a $50 billion interim appropriation but the measure included a time table for combat troop withdrawal. The measure failed on a procedural vote in the Senate. Bush said he would veto such a measure if it reached his desk.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said if emergency defense funding weren't approved, he would be forced to lay off civilian employees and close military facilities.

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