David Obey News

Congress used to raise taxes to pay for America's wars. Isn't it time to return to that practice? In 1798, Congress enacted its first direct tax - on land, houses and slaves - to pay for the naval expansion in what historians now call the Quasi-War with France.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Thursday threw cold water on the idea of a war surtax to help pay for President Obama's troop buildup in Afghanistan, adding that the deficit will be a concern when the House begins to review the costs.

President Barack Obama spent Tuesday night explaining to the American people why he's sending more troops to Afghanistan.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has all but killed a proposal by senior House Democrats to levy a tax on nearly all Americans to pay for the Afghanistan war.

Georgia state National Guardsman, Sgt. Scott A. Millican, right, from Statesboro, GA., and Air Force Techincal Sgt.

Michigan Sen. Carl Levin took to the airwaves on CBS' "Face the Nation" this morning to get a few things off his chest about the country's Middle East operations and what President Obama should do about increasing troops in Afghanistan.

Congressman David Obey, a Wisconsin Democrat who is chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, has come up with a novel idea:Americans should pay for the wars they are waging.

House Appropriations Committee ranking member Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., Monday called for holding down increases in five nondefense fiscal 2010 spending bills to 2 percent over fiscal 2009 levels to pay for most of President Obama's Afghanistan plan, which will be unveiled Tuesday night.

Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., appears on "Face the Nation" in Washington, Nov. 29, 2009.

Tue Dec 1, 5:58 pm ET WASHINGTON - A wary, divided Congress raised serious questions Tuesday about President Barack Obama 's new strategy for the war in Afghanistan , as well as its timetables and his plans to pay for the troop buildup.

House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt on Tuesday criticized a "war tax" proposed by House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey in an unusual public spat between two top Democrats.

As the governor was railing yet again against Washington and filing Thursday to run for a third term, two potential rivals - one from each party - joined forces to fight for a $3 billion Army contract and 3,000 jobs at a Houston-area plant that builds combat trucks.

Karen Nook of Milwaukee protests President Barack Obamaa s plan to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan during a rally Wednesday at the Reuss Federal Plaza.

The top Democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives said on Thursday she opposes a possible "war tax" to fund an escalation of U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Here's a closer look at some of President Obama's remarks Tuesday on Afghanistan in the context of the larger debate.

President Obama's decision about what to do in Afghanistan, which was announced Tuesday, Dec.

Dick Morris says Obama is 'trying to have it both ways' This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," November 30, 2009.

The chairman of the House Appropriations Committee said Tuesday night that President Obama "inherited a god awful mess [in Afghanistan] and he has no good choices," but that it is irresponsible to continue the war there without finding a way to pay for it.

Video: Where will the new troops go? Video: Army town reacts to Afghanistan plan Video: More troops in Afghanistan? Obama, whom Republicans had accused of "dithering" over the decision, came to the conclusion that the deployment needs to be accelerated to knock back the Taliban, the officials said.

President Barack Obamaa s plan to send 30,000 more U.S. troops to Afghanistan is being greeted with skepticism or outright opposition by Democrats and support from Republicans in Congress.