October 26, 2007 (LPAC)--Facing defeat on the House floor on a Congressional resolution denouncing genocide committed against Armenians in 1915, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi induced four sponsors of the measure to send her a letter yesterday, telling her that they are willing to put off a vote on the measure until next year.

A Republican sponsor, Rep. George Radanovich (R-CA), said he supported delaying a vote, but he declined to sign the letter, according to the Los Angeles Times. Radanovich said that Pelosi had decided on her own not to bring the resolution to a vote, and said: "It's not in my interest to give cover to the Speaker."

The Los Angeles Times said that the withdrawal of the resolution "extricated" Pelosi "from the clash between a powerful constituency in California and an important U.S. military ally."

Both the Turkish government and the Bush Administration mounted strong campaigns against the resolution. Rep. John Murtha (D-PA), one of the U.S. military's strongest supporters in Congress, said that he began warning Pelosi against the resolution last February. "I explained what the ramifications were from a military standpoint, but she said she felt compelled to do it," Murtha stated, according to the New York Times.