GovernmentExecutive.com

The House this week will consider a $96.7 billion emergency supplemental appropriations bill that funds wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other military and domestic needs for the rest of the fiscal year.

The bill is expected to pass easily, despite anticipated opposition from anti-war Democrats. But Republicans might attempt to provoke a partisan fight during floor debate over the future of the 241 detainees held at the military's detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. However, Democratic leaders could thwart GOP efforts to thrust Guantanamo into the spotlight by opting for a closed rule.

The spending measure approved by the House Appropriations Committee last week does not include the $80 million requested by the administration to begin closing the military's detention facility at Guantanamo, which President Obama wants to shutter early next year.

House Appropriations Chairman David Obey, D-Wis., has said he could not defend that request because the administration does not have a plan for closure.

But despite the lack of Guantanamo funding, Republicans tried during the markup to insert language prohibiting the transfer of any detainees to U.S. soil. Each attempt failed along party lines.

Republicans might take issue with the funding levels in the bill. House Appropriations ranking member Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., last week objected to the majority's addition of "billions of dollars to international assistance programs -- some of it excessive and poorly justified."

The bill is $11.8 billion above the administration's request. The biggest portion -- $84.5 billion -- is for Defense Department and intelligence operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The bill also includes $10 billion for the State Department and USAID and $2 billion to combat the H1N1 flu.

The bill buys eight C-17 and 11 C-130 transport aircraft the administration did not seek. It also provides $4.8 billion for additional Mine Resistant Ambush-Protected Vehicles, $2.2 billion more than the amount requested by the administration.

It also includes more than $1 billion more than requested by the administration for assistance to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The bill also requires the administration to submit a detailed report on its progress in Afghanistan and Pakistan by next year. It does not set conditions on future funding, but Obey has said he is "extremely dubious" that any U.S. effort could end the conflicts in Afghanistan and Pakistan and hopes the administration reports back with a "fish-or-cut-bait" assessment.

The Senate Appropriations Committee will mark up its version of the supplemental on Thursday.