First, it seemed the House Judiciary Committee voted down the Bush torture bill. Now I hear that Jim Sensenbrenner cracked the whip and eked out a tiny majority. Here's Reuters:
In an abrupt reversal, a U.S. House of Representatives committee narrowly voted on Wednesday to endorse President George W. Bush's plan for tough interrogations and trials of foreign terrorism suspects after Republicans rounded up enough members.
About an hour earlier, the House Judiciary Committee rejected Bush's plan, with three Republicans joining committee Democrats. Embarrassed Republicans then summoned absent members, called for another vote, and approved it 20-19.
It's called winning ugly. This internecine struggle cannot be quite what Rove had in mind. Stay tuned.