Latest In

News

Senate Bill Would Return Taxpayer Dollars from Iraq to U.S.

Remember that GAO report from a few weeks back revealing that: 1) Iraq’s oil revenue surplus could reach $50 billion this year and 2) roughly $10 billion of

Jul 31, 202051.9K Shares1.5M Views
Remember that GAO reportfrom a few weeks back revealing that: 1) Iraq’s oil revenue surplus could reach $50 billion this year and 2) roughly $10 billion of the $43 billion Washington has appropriated for Iraq reconstruction remains unspent?
Well, Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) wants the money back. And this week he introduced legislation to do just that.
From his statement:
Americans are paying for Iraq reconstruction twice, once when they fill up their gas tanks and again by giving the Iraqi government billions of dollars which they don’t need.
My plan sounds simple because it is. Iraq has the money to pay for its own reconstruction, while our country is swimming in red ink. We need to take our money back and invest it our country.
As The New York Times editorializedlast month:
Iraqis have had little incentive to spend their own money given the willingness of the United States Congress to keep writing blank checks for President Bush’s disastrous adventure there.
Dorgan’s strategy would go a long way to reversing that trend.
Paula M. Graham

Paula M. Graham

Reviewer
Latest Articles
Popular Articles