Iraq Has Become a U.S. Welfare State

According to House Budget Committee cost analysis dated Sept. 23, 2003 (.pdf link | html link), the estimated upside cost of the war in Iraq might reach $418 billion by 2010. In contrast, the projected budget for Hurricane Katrina relief is $1.1 billion by 2009.

Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz on March 27, 2003 said, "There’s a lot of money to pay for this that doesn’t have to be U.S. taxpayer money, and it starts with the assets of the Iraqi people... and on a rough recollection, the oil revenues of that country could bring between $50 and $100 billion over the course of the next two or three years. We’re dealing with a country that can really finance its own reconstruction, and relatively soon."⁽¹⁾ The same day Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said, "I don't believe that the United States has the responsibility for reconstruction, in a sense... [Reconstruction] funds can come from those various sources I mentioned: frozen assets, oil revenues and a variety of other things, including the Oil for Food, which has a very substantial number of billions of dollars in it."⁽²⁾

In reality, it's only June 2006 and the cost has already reached over $287 billion and rising quickly. U.S. taxpayers pay the salaries of the police, military, and who knows exactly what else since most of it is just passed out as cash and sometimes gets lost. If they lived in the U.S. and received taxpayer money, that would be called welfare. No one in this administration seems concerned that there is no way to find out where the money goes.

Who cares, right? We have a booming economy, why be concerned about a billion here or a billion there?

I'll tell you why Mr. Bush. It's not your money. None of your businesses were successful and after seeing your spend and borrow style, Americans are starting to see what I've been saying all along: you are incompetent.

I'm sorry you couldn't play golf or go fishing everyday like you did when you were the governor here in Texas. At this point a majority of Americans might agree that's the best course of action for you now. We'll keep paying you, just don't do anything else, don't say anything else, and please don't promote anyone else who has been loyal to you. Again, as I've known for a long time, those are the ones who don't know what they're doing. If you have to fill a vacancy, look around for the person whose views are the polar opposite of your own.

Remember that Condi Rice told you the memo titled Bin Laden determined to attack inside the U.S. was historic and nothing to worry about. She was your national security advisor, gave you bad advice, and we had the biggest terrorist attack in American history only five weeks later. She should have been fired, yet you ignored her incompetence and promoted her. Try to remember who, if anyone, said it should be taken seriously. That should be the Secretary of State. That's how you choose the best person for the job, Mr. Bush. You've taken a baby step with Tony Snow; he criticized a few of your decisions. Do some more hiring like that. We'll all be better off.

(1) Source: House Committee on Appropriations Hearing on a Supplemental War Regulation, 3/27/03
(2) Source: Senate Appropriations Hearing, 3/27/03

Technorati Tags:
Politics
Bush
Iraq war
Donald Rumsfeld
Condi Rice
Tony Snow Sphere: Related Content