The Senate must now pass its own highway bill, but its current proposal calls for spending $318 billion, meaning the final bill that emerges from the conference committee could be much more expensive than even the House version.
Worse, depending on the Senate vote, President Bush may lack the one-third support he would need in either chamber to sustain a veto. The pledge being circulating by Rep. Chris Cox's (R.-Calif.), committing House members to support any Bush veto aimed at controlling spending, so far has only 108 takers (146 votes are needed to stop an over-ride).
