California Rep Sorry for White House War Jibe

Democratic Rep. Pete Stark apologized on the floor of the House yesterday for accusing Republicans of sending soldiers to Iraq "to get their heads blown off for the president's amusement." The 75-year-old lawmaker issued his regrets in a somber statement "to my colleagues, the president, his family, the troops," reports the San Francisco Chronicle.

"I hope that with this apology I will become as insignificant as I should be and that we can return to the issues that do divide us, but that we can resolve in a better fashion," said Stark. The White House never reacted to the statement but GOP lawmakers expressed outrage. A move by Republicans to censure Stark failed. (More Pete Stark stories.)