Bush declines to tap Iraqi oil for rebuilding costs

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President Bush, who has long been accused by critics of waging war for oil in Iraq, yesterday said he will not give in to demands by those same critics to now take that oil as payment for reconstruction.

"That's exactly the point I made to the members of Congress who have come here to the White House to talk about loans or grants," Mr. Bush said in response to a question from The Washington Times in a Rose Garden press conference.

"Let's don't burden Iraq with loans," he said. "The only thing they'll be able to repay their loans with is the oil."

The president declined to say whether his critics were being hypocritical for flip-flopping on whether he should take Iraq's oil.

A decision on the question of loans is expected today from House and Senate negotiators who are hammering out a final version of the $87 billion spending bill. Loan proponents yesterday seemed resigned to failure as Republican leaders have garnered the votes to defeat their plan.

The first formal meeting of the conference committee broke up yesterday after Democratic negotiators demanded more time to review the provisions in the compromise bill leaders are asking be approved.

"We shouldn't deal with it as if it's an afterthought to the D.C. appropriations bill," said Rep. David R. Obey of Wisconsin, the top House Democrat on the conference.

Republicans agreed to postpone the conference a day, but Sen. Ted Stevens, Alaska Republican and chairman of the committee, said he wants to move quickly.

"We have men and women in Iraq who need this money," he said.