House panel backs $45 bln for Iraq

[maddezmom]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A House of Representatives subcommittee on Tuesday approved another $45 billion for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, which would bring the costs of the U.S. military operations there to more than $300 billion.

The House Appropriations Defense subcommittee agreed in a closed session to add the emergency money to its bill to fund the Pentagon in the next fiscal year starting on Oct. 1.

The White House did not ask for the additional money, but lawmakers have said the Pentagon would need a "bridge fund" for Iraq and Afghanistan to carry it from October through March 2006 when Congress will have to pass another emergency spending bill.

The Pentagon has just received $76 billion for the wars from an $82 billion emergency bill Congress passed this month.

~snip~
more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050524/pl_nm/iraq_usa_congress_dc

[AzDar]

1. We should start some sort of pool...Who in Government will be the first

to stand up and say "enough,no more"???

[Mnemosyne]

2. I'm still wondering where

that $2 TRILLION that is unaccounted for by the Pentagon that ended up basically unreported in the media when 9/11 hit!

:mad: :bounce: :wtf:

:grr: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[Barrett808]

3. House panel backs $45 bln for Iraq

House panel backs $45 bln for Iraq
By Vicki Allen

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A House of Representatives subcommittee on Tuesday approved another $45 billion for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, which would bring the costs of the U.S. military operations there to more than $300 billion.

The House Appropriations Defense subcommittee agreed in a closed session to add the emergency money to its bill to fund the Pentagon in the next fiscal year starting on Oct. 1.

The White House did not ask for the additional money, but lawmakers have said the Pentagon would need a "bridge fund" for Iraq and Afghanistan to carry it from October through March 2006 when Congress will have to pass another emergency spending bill.

The Pentagon has just received $76 billion for the wars from an $82 billion emergency bill Congress passed this month.

"This was their initiative," Scott Milburn, a spokesman for the White House budget office, said of the $45 billion. "Our basic position is we'll work with them to determine the most effective way to use it in '06."

(more)

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050524/pl_nm/iraq_usa_congress_dc

[denverbill]

4. Nooo problem. It's only $300 billion. We can just borrow that money.

However, no way in HELL can we come up with the $1000 billion needed to shore up Social Security!!! That's outragegous to even think about that. We can't borrow $1000 billion to help our own fellow Americans retire. But $300 billion to democratize the Middle East is easily affordable.

[AzDar]

5. ...and oh, Gawd...Can you imagine what the FINAL bill will be? You

know.... when we are finally driven out in the next couple decades or so?

[cliss]

22. Would you believe.......

none of the money that's been sent on Iraq, is in real funds. It's all borrowed money.

This war has racked up debt into the future as far as the eye can see. It's just unbelievable. It's like a man who's maxed out his credit cards. He's used up the few introductory offers that are sent to him in the mail.

His checking account is overdrawn. He's borrowed from every relative on the face of the earth. All his friends are tapped out. He's been to the dog races a few times, to "make up for the losses".

Next, we see him peeling off the wallpaper. He throws it in the fireplace, to keep warm. Next, he breaks up the furniture and throws it in the fire.

That's US.

[xxqqqzme]

6. that's $177 in the last

3 weeks. Our schools, infrastructure, health care and national parks could use a 'bridge' as well.

[daleo]

7. That's just part of the down payment

The mortgage will take years to pay off, then the house will fall down.

[LynnTheDem]

8. "Iraq will pay for this war and reconstruction" $8 billion still missing

I presume.

This is YOUR MONEY, AMERICA! Sure nice of you to give up YOUR MONEY and YOUR FUTURE for bush's corporate cronies like Halliburton! They recorded record profits for the last 2 years thanks to you war supporting Americans! HALLIBURTON THANKS YOU!

[rodeodance]

9. oh my god!!!

[LynnTheDem]

10. You didn't KNOW!...Wait a minute...WHAT missing $8 billion???! OMG!!!

Heh! Do ya think we could pass as a pair of US Media reporters? :D

[entanglement]

11. Anyone know the link to the site which

explains what GOOD could have been with the money wasted in Iraq?

[Moderator]

12. kick to combine

[NNN0LHI]

13. US House panel backs another $45 billion for Iraq, Afghanistan

http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=5817412&cKey=1117027976000

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A House of Representatives subcommittee on Tuesday approved another $45 billion for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, which would bring the costs of the U.S. military operations there to more than $300 billion.

The House Appropriations Defense subcommittee agreed in a closed session to add the emergency money to its bill to fund the Pentagon in the fiscal year starting on Oct. 1.

Lawmakers have said the Pentagon would need a "bridge fund" for Iraq and Afghanistan to carry it from October through March 2006 when Congress will have to pass another emergency spending bill.

The Pentagon has just received $76 billion for the wars from an $82 billion emergency bill Congress passed this month.

[dubyaD40web]

14. $300 billion!

Conservative my ass.

[liberal N proud]

15. It is only your kids retirement. They already spent yours and mine

This could go down and the most costly little police action ever undertaken by a war lord.

[UpInArms]

16. they won't need to retire - the draft will kick in

('cause they have the toys, but not the boys)

and they will all be dead or dismembered.

:banghead:

[atreides1]

17. SO

The Repuke committee chairman yanks the Dem amendment that would have allowed Guard and Reservist access to TriCare, and then the subcommittee goes ahead and gives $45 billion more for Iraq and
Afghanistan?

And they say we don't support the troops!!!!!

[pissed_American]

18. WTF is going on here !!!!!

[Jacobin]

19. Here's an interesting comparison to the Viet Nam war cost

Vietnam War: $111 billion, or $517 billion in 1998 dollars.

I don't know how authoritative this website is, but it sounds pretty close

http://www.hypocrites.com/article930.html

In about two more years we will have spent more in IraqNam than in Viet Nam which lasted ten plus years longer.

Way to go Chimp.

[Javaman]

20. So much for SS...

If they start a draft, then all the working age stiffs (men AND women) will be in the service getting blown to pieces, thus depriving the work force of additional money that would be paid into SS. So that predicted date of 2042 should be moved to about 2035, give or take a year.

Gotta love that moron*, huh? so crafty, that will be his argument when he reinstates the draft.

[LevelB]

21. Lets see...

We spend about $1,000,000,000 every 2.5 days in Iraq, which is about $400,000,000 per day. If we kill 10 insurgents/day (who knows, since "we don't do bodycounts"), that would be $40,000,000/dead insurgent.

You would think that a Republican administration could at least get us wholesale on this.

I just can't believe they were re-elected.

B.