Iraq Costs Surge, May Force Bush to Shuffle Funds, Seek More (Bloomberg)

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May 3 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. military operations in Iraq may be $4 billion over budget by August, forcing President George W. Bush to shift money from other Pentagon accounts or ask Congress for more money before the November election, say Republican and Democratic lawmakers.

``If the tempo of combat stays like it has been since early April, they'll have to increase the troops strength and they'll need a supplemental budget of well over $75 billion,'' said Representative John Murtha, 71, a member of Congress from Pennsylvania since 1974 and the senior Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee panel that approves defense spending.

The monthly cost of the war is approaching $6 billion, at least $2 billion more than Bush projected two months ago, said Senator Lincoln Chafee, 51, a first-term Republican from Rhode Island who is chairman of the Foreign Relations subcommittee that oversees Iraq. The Pentagon has spent more than $70 billion in Iraq since January 2003, according to data provided by the Pentagon comptroller.

The Pentagon stepped up shipments last week of M1 Abrams tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles and M-16 bullets following insurgencies in Fallujah and cities near Baghdad that pushed the Army and Marines into their fiercest battles since Bush declared an end to major combat a year ago Saturday. At least 128 servicemen were killed in April, the worst monthly toll yet.

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Link: http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=a.ITUP8h1gbA&refer=us

Lives, Money
Blood, Treasure

Out of Iraq NOW!!!

:argh:

Those of us who do not want to pay for this war of choice that has nothing to do with national defense should not have to fund it if we don't want to.

I would not worry about it much. I think the official policy is to pay for this with our kids money.

They could do it on Fox News and let Sean Hannity host..

Right-wingers are always suggesting that I send in more money in taxes since I don't favor Bush's tax cuts.

Maybe you should include two different options. The first option is to fund the war using my current taxes. The second is to fund the war, but fund it by putting my children into debt.

I'd like to see how many Republicans actually favor putting their children into debt to pay for this war.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/040428/earns_halliburton_38.html

Associated Press
Wednesday April 28, 4:43 pm ET

HOUSTON (AP) -- Halliburton Co. reported first-quarter net loss Wednesday because of a big charge related to a pending settlement of asbestos claims.
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Revenues surged 80 percent to $5.5 billion from $3.1 billion in the January-March period of 2003. That gain was largely attributed to revenues for Halliburton subsidiary KBR, formerly known as Kellogg, Brown & Root, and its government contract work in Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East. Halliburton said the company's Iraq-related work contributed about $2.1 billion in revenues and $32 million in operating income in the first quarter.
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to Eat.

I mean, otherwise they'd really have to suck it up on the asbestos losses. Of course, the only reason they have that is because good ol' Dick bought out Dresser Industries and assumed all their asbestos liabilities. Why would he do that? Turns out that Dresser and the Bushes go way back. Imagine that...

actually utilized its purse string authority over war making? (Since it's already abdicated its powers of declaring war since WWII.) And Bush HAD to pull the troops out as a consequence! And Bush resigned in disgrace, since Congress had essentially demonstrated a vote of "no confidence" in his policies? And he gave a flowery speech written by Rove before he and Laura walked across the White House lawn into the helicopter and flew away into a life of obscurity? Wouldn't that be great?

NAAAHHHHH!

Congress refused to appropriate money for military operations in southeast Asia. That would be a wonderful indictment of Bush's policies. However, I believe that we are a far way from that scenario being reality.

rushing out to sea.

The casualties KIA need to get to 10,000 and WIA 100,000 or so and draft riots in the streets. Then these DINOs will begin to develop BACK BONES

Disgusting

Sorry Gramps no money for you. Go to work as a greeter to pay for your prescriptions--- you lazy, evil, washed up, old person< /Extreme sarcasm>

Too bad it won't happen sooner, cause that's the only way we are leaving IraqNam.

He's already been caught doing it.

just stop paying the soldiers.

"ARRRRG...WE BE BORDIN THE SILVER FLEET AT HIGH NOON LADS!"

they would be put in a bad light for not supporting the troops. We have to spread the message that it's costing too much in blood and treasure, and that we need to take the scissors to the moron's* credit card.

by proposing Iraq budget amount. I think that's a great idea. It shows fiscal responsibility, and paints the Bush scum into a corner.

Boggles the mind how the media in this country has twisted 50% of the populace into buying into this fraud of a pretzledent.

Boggles the fricking mind.