By AP
WASHINGTON (AP) – WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House is asking Congress for $2 billion to help prepare for a possible swine flu pandemic.
The request is included in a huge funding bill for military and diplomatic efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
President Barack Obama requested the new anti-flu funding out of "an abundance of caution" even as the panic surrounding the swine flu outbreak has faded considerably.
Obama also sent lawmakers a request for $200 million in humanitarian aid to Pakistan.
The requests, if granted, would likely bring the cost of Obama's war funding bill to more than $100 billion.
Republicans in the House are lining up to oppose the war-funding bill if Democrats insist on including a new line of credit for the International Monetary Fund.