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Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., and Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., appear poised to take on the White House over President Bush's threat to veto extra spending for homeland security--a "dare" that Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., said the President is ready to take on.

After meeting with Byrd Friday morning, Daschle said that at next Tuesday's markup, Byrd plans to add roughly $15 billion more to the fiscal 2002 Defense spending bill, which is already carrying the $20 billion terrorism supplemental as a separate title.

Daschle said Byrd's amendment would comprise the balance of the $20 billion the President promised New York for its recovery efforts, or roughly $8 billion, and the $7.5 billion homeland security package Byrd and Daschle had initially tried to add to the pending economic stimulus bill.

Lott called the anticipated move a "blatant and excessive rearrangement of funds," and scolded, "We should not be playing around with the Department of Defense appropriations bill... There should not be an effort to just stick this in the President's face and say I dare you [to veto the bill]. I can tell you this, this President would take the dare."

But because several budget points of order lie against the entire Defense bill--with or without Byrd's extra spending--Senate Republicans could be the first to have to take the dare.

When the bill hits the Senate floor, they will have to decide whether to raise points of order against it. Should Republicans muster the 41 votes to sustain a point of order, Byrd's version of the bill would fail, but because Byrd would actually be offering his version as an amendment to the House-passed bill, the underlying House bill would remain.

Regardless of the potential implications, including a presidential veto, Daschle said Senate Democrats are not backing down.

Bush's opposition to the extra spending, Daschle said, "should not preclude us, as a co-equal branch of government, to assert what we think is right. We're going to continue to maintain that position until this issue is resolved... I think it is important for us to keep pressing for the position we think is appropriate."

Lott urged Byrd to wait for recommendations from the White House on homeland security spending. Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge wrote Daschle Thursday urging him to await a request from the administration rather than adding new spending now.

"Additional funds will probably be needed to meet these objectives," he said, "but we will not know precisely when, where, or in what amount resources will be required until we have clearly defined our objectives and completed our analysis of the needs."

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