Pelosi steers spending debate to costs in Iraq

[babylonsister]

Pelosi steers spending debate to costs in Iraq
By Mike Soraghan
October 10, 2007


President Bush wants a fight about spending, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) plans to turn the tables to show how much money he is spending in Iraq.

Pelosi and other Democratic leaders intend to spend the next month putting a price tag on the war, using legislation, hearings and talking points in an effort to drive home how much it costs Americans.

“Republicans say there’s excessive spending. We agree. Two-hundred billion for Iraq is excessive,” said Rep. Rahm Emanuel (Ill.), chairman of the House Democratic Caucus.
Bush has repeatedly threatened to veto Democratic spending bills that come in higher than the budget numbers he has set.

Pelosi expounded on the financial issue at her news conference last week, saying that “the cost of the war in terms of dollars is a very important issue for the American people, especially when you think that we can insure 10 million children in America for one year for 40 days in Iraq.”

The comparison of Iraq and children’s healthcare has become a standard part of any Pelosi appearance. But in recent days, Pelosi and other Democratic leaders have been filling in the details of their plan to line up a comparison on spending.

On Tuesday, she put a widely supported bill to attack “war profiteering” on the House’s fast-track agenda for a vote. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) is to follow up with a report on waste, fraud and abuse in Iraq.

more...

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/pelosi-steers-spending-debate-to-costs-in-iraq-2007-10-10.html

[Lerkfish]

1. and then do ....what?

[sakabatou]

2. Keep spending and say withdrawing is off the tale?

:wtf:

[Lerkfish]

3. tha'ts what its sounding like. the irony is she wants the american people to be aware

of what's wrong with the war.

that's odd, because the american people already know that. The real challenge is getting congress to do anything about it.

So, instead of action, we'll have seminars on stuff we already know.

um....okay.

[noamnety]

4. how much money HE is spending in Iraq?

If my kid asks me for $50 for junk food and I give her $50 out of my wallet, at that point I've lost the right to complain that she shouldn't have spent so much money on something so harmful.