Blitzer: Lawmakers Privately Asking If Iraqis Are ‘Playing The U.S. Taxpayers For Suckers’ On Reconstruction
Blitzer: Lawmakers Privately Asking If Iraqis Are ‘Playing The U.S. Taxpayers For Suckers’ On Reconstruction
During the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing yesterday featuring Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle complained, according to CNN, that “U.S. taxpayers are carrying a staggering burden right now as Iraq actually rakes in massive amounts of oil revenues, billions and billions of dollars.”
“To add insult to injury, in addition to spending $10 billions of U.S. dollars on reconstruction, American taxpayers are also paying three to four dollars a gallon on gas here at home,” said Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI). “Isn’t time for the Iraqis to start bearing more of those expenses, particularly in light of the windfall in revenue due to the high price in oil?” asked Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME).
According to Levin, “Iraq has about $30 billion in surplus funds stored in U.S. banks,” and CNN reports that Iraq’s oil revenue is “estimated to reach $100 billion dollars by the end of this year.” Watch CNN’s report:
Writing on CNN’s Political Ticker blog, Situation Room host Wolf Blitzer says that while U.S. lawmakers are publicly asking when Iraqi’s can “pick up the tab” for Iraq, privately, “several of them” wonder if “U.S. taxpayers” are being played like “suckers“:
At a time of economic distress in the United States, including fears of recession, home foreclosures, job losses, infrastructure strains, and health care worries, U.S. lawmakers publicly are asking why the Iraqis themselves can’t pick up the tab for their own reconstruction. Privately, several of them are going one step further — asking whether the Iraqis actually are playing the U.S. taxpayers for suckers.
The AP reports today that “Democrats plan to push legislation this spring that would force the Iraqi government to spend its own surplus in oil revenues to rebuild the country, sparing U.S. dollars.” Levin says the legislation may be “part of this year’s war spending bill or the 2009 defense authorization bill.”
A line Gen. Petraeus just dropped plays right into an argument that anti-war groups and members of Congress have been making, namely that the U.S. presence in Iraq retards the country's progress. “We are keenly aware that there are going to be cases where [Iraqis] say, ‘Why should we do it for ourselves if they’re going to do it for us?" the general said.
Sort Comments By: Top Rated | Date
52 Responses to “Blitzer: Lawmakers Privately Asking If Iraqis Are ‘Playing The U.S. Taxpayers For Suckers’ On Reconstruction”
Topic Cloud
ArchivesBlog Roll
Hey!
April 9th, 2008 at 12:21 pmWe can pay for it.
We'll just print more money.
No problem.
Iraq’s plan for invaders has always been patience, awareness and out waiting the invader.
The plan has been successful in every invasion to date, going back prior to the birth of Islam.
They now have the USA paying Sunnis to not fight.
Victory cannot be achieved in Iraq. Not by Genghis Khan or Genghis Chimp.
Let’s get out now before we lose another 4,000 good soldiers.
(Posted earlier in the Wonk Room)
April 9th, 2008 at 12:21 pmOf course they are! It is not hard to take advantage of a country when the "leader" is so completely incompetent, incapable of changing directions, and blinded to reality. Why should Iraq want to spend it's own treasure or blood when you have the GOP so willing to hand over American dollars and lives?
April 9th, 2008 at 12:22 pmWhile I don't like paying for this awful war - I also think it's a bit rude to ask Iraqis to pay for rebuilding after we blew it all up. I mean, if someone punched you in the face and broke your teeth, I'll bet you'd be pissed if you had to pay to get your mouth fixed.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:22 pmOf course we are being played as suckers. Both when it comes to money and when it comes to protection. Why should they pay for reconstruction or why should their military step up to the plate if we are willing to do it for them.
Personally, I think the best thing that could happen to Iraq right now would be for either us to put the Iraqi's to work rebuilding (rather than hiring foreign labor) or for us to bow out and give them some money for reconstruction so they can put their people to work.
I doubt there would be the level of violence in Iraq there is now if people were actually working and supporting their families. If there is no work for you and the only financial support you are offered is the militias who will pay you to shoot at Americans, what would you do if you were an Iraqi?
April 9th, 2008 at 12:24 pmIt's not the Iraqis playing us for suckers -- well, maybe they are, but really, they're only picking up the crumbs that Halliburton doesn't shove into its mouth.
It's really BushCo and the mil-ind complex that's running the con game.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:25 pmOf course they are playing us for suckers. They know that the WAR CRIMINAL morons, Bush and Cheney are making massive WAR PROFITS off of this and they sure are not going to stop raking in the dough now.
OBL played us for fools, why not the Iraqi's?
April 9th, 2008 at 12:25 pmBut But But - George and Dick and Condi and John and David don't want to anger their good friends in the oil and defense and banking business.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:25 pmWho needs the Iraqis to play us for suckers? We've got Bush/Cheney for that.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:26 pmIraq is willing to spend the last American dollar.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:26 pmWhile I don’t like paying for this awful war - I also think it’s a bit rude to ask Iraqis to pay for rebuilding after we blew it all up. I mean, if someone punched you in the face and broke your teeth, I’ll bet you’d be pissed if you had to pay to get your mouth fixed.
I agree with you for the most part. But, a lot of the damage caused in Iraq these days is caused by their civil war. I do believe that we are responsible for fixing anything we destroyed, but I don't think we are responsible for fixing things that were destroyed while they were fighting each other.
The best thing we can do now is to leave and give them a couple months of the billions we were spending occupying their country to allow them to hire their own people to rebuild their country.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:26 pmZooey; touche'
April 9th, 2008 at 12:27 pmI find fascinating the contrast between the way right-wingers look at welfare assistance here at home ("rewarding laziness, people on welfare would rather collect checks than work") and their attitude toward the massive payout to Iraqis on both sides.
What incentive do militia leaders have to make peace, when peace will cut off the gravy train?
But, because it was Republican who is responsible for this ginormous fu(kup, wingnuts think that payoffs are the way to go. Gotta keep up the pretense that the Surge™ is Working! Otherwise it could be embarrassing.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:30 pmThat idea might hold some appeal if it were true Iraq is making any decisions of its own right now, but we know they're not.
Since Bushco is calling all the shots, we can safely surmise it is Bushco alone that is ripping us off.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:31 pmLawmakers then asked a second question - Is it true that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11? It's as if Congress is about 5 years behind the American people in their understanding. Money goes into Iraq. Violence comes out.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:33 pmOh my God Wolf Blitzer finally got a brain. We must thank the Wizard for giving it to him. But as usual Wolf will loose it as fast as he got it. This man is either the dumbest anchors on the planet or cozy with Republicans and their causes. Wolf normally runs away from anything that reports that facts as they are. He trys to shape the news to fit the conservative view of things. They (Republicans) called him a lap dog of the left and he turned into Lou Dobb Light. This really surprises me.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:37 pmNo big deal, it's not lie we're paying for it. It's my daughter's and unborn grandchildren's problem.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:39 pmWolf the answer is YES. What, the Iraqi's use us for a fat piggy bank? Why would they do that when Bush is so gladly giving them the keys to the treasury? They run America not Bush/Cheney. This idiot is so happy that they smile at him, he's look into Maliki's eyes and fell in love. Of course they are using this fool, who wouldn't he's such a dummy?
April 9th, 2008 at 12:39 pmSuckers? That would be a compliment.
We're taking it right up the a$$.
_AIO_
April 9th, 2008 at 12:40 pm#11 Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:
I agree that much of the destruction currently going on is self inflicted - though, when we go in and completely destroy a nation's infrastructure then incompetently "rebuild" it to the point where there is still very little access to basic needs like power and water - it's hard to imagine any society not breaking down into total anarchy. Add to that the fact we've made reconstruction so obscenely expensive by giving no-bid, guaranteed profit contracts to our own war-profiteers as mentioned above it seems pretty cruel to expect a pillaged nation to pay for it's rebuilding.
That said, I truly foam at the mouth thinking of the billions in tax payer dollars being "lost" and wasted, being used to prop up war-lords and militias, building a fortress embassy of unparalleled scale and being pocketed by greedy and inefficient contractors.
The whole situation makes me ill. Just like there is no good way to end this war, there is no good way to finance the reconstruction of the damage we have done.
Maybe if we turned the rebuilding of Iraq into a star-studded reality show we could generate enough ad revenue and public interest in the situation to get this thing wrapped up in one season?
April 9th, 2008 at 12:41 pmINVADERS HAVE NO RIGHTS.....ONLY RESPONSIBILITIES
I HAVE SOME NEWS FOR YOU.....AN ILLEGAL INVASIONS AND OCCUPATION FORCE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL INFRASTRUCTURE REPARATIONS, LOST WAGES AND LIVES LOST.
OOOOOOOPPPPPSSSS......LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE ON THE HOOK FOR ANOTHER $5-10 TRILLION.
HAPPY NEWS AS CHENEY GETS READY TO SPEND HIS RETIREMENT DAYS IN DUBAI
April 9th, 2008 at 12:42 pmI already posted this on ThinkFast.
Like I said last Sunday, dems want reconstruction funds to be structured as loans, to be repaid by Iraqi oil revenues.
What is clear to me, watching the hearings, is that Crocker is two-faced. He repeatedly fobs of democrats’ questions by saying “I am not going to answer that, asit is a hypothetical situation,” yet SC. republican Joe Wilson just asked a hypothetical question, and he was happy to answer it, because it re-inforced his talking point. TP should put a staffer on researching how many times during the hearings he did this. I’ll bet it was more than once.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:43 pmI mean think about it? If you went out with some fool who thought he was your friend and you tried to pay and he says" "No, no, I'll pay", every time you do something, what would you think? And believe me Bush/Cheney are glad to spend our tax money like a drunken sailor without asking for a thing from Maliki. Why? Because he's their friend. That so badly wants someone to like them, the fools just took out our collective wallet and said: "Here help yourself, it's got trillions of dollars, just go right ahead and spend until your heart is content, after all it's coming from the American people, it's not my wallet anyway".
April 9th, 2008 at 12:45 pmThe Republican party is made up of that ugly boy who nobody talked to in school. So now when someone talks to them, they automatically declare "he's my friend", and give our money and treasure to them. Well I've got news for that grown up ugly boy, it's over my friends. There's going to be a new sheriff in town come November and his name is "Barack Obama".
April 9th, 2008 at 12:49 pmThe Shadow Says:
April 9th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
Shadow, can you stop with the bold. It's hard on the eyes and is tantamount to shouting the way all caps is. Bold a single sentence if you must, but bolding your entire comment is irritating. I am skipping your comments because of it.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:51 pmSimply put, making Iraq pay for its occupation, after an illegal war, is the last retort EVILness.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:51 pmYou gotta pay to play without Delay!
April 9th, 2008 at 12:55 pmWhat is potentially disastrous, is the way Iraqis might react if this US legislation is enacted. Will the Kurds, Sunni and Shia, agree to it, given the current, politically inequitable arrangement? Or will it further fractionate the populace? If reconstruction loans are doled out by the Shiite-controlled Iraqi government, it's a sure bet the projects will benefit mostly-Shiite areas.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:56 pmThat's only half of the Republican Party, and the lesser half at that. The other, greater half is that same ugly boy who, now that he has some money and toys, declares anyone who's ever looked at him cross-eyed as a "mortal enemy" or a "grave and gathering threat".
Yep, that's the Republican Party I know -- pathetic before those it likes and belligerent to everyone else.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:58 pmAre the Iraqis playing the U.S. taxpayers for suckers?
No, Haliburton, KBR, Blackwater, et. al -- with the help of the Bush administration and its enablers in Congress -- are playing the U.S. taxpayers for suckers -- to the tune of over $1 billion per week with no end in sight.
Just keep on votin' Republican America and soon, you won't have a pot to piss in.
April 9th, 2008 at 12:59 pmi should think on this some more, but my first reaction to this story?
if someone comes into MY house and trashes it, you damn well better know
that i'm NOT gonna PAY for it too!
...
i understand the "lawmakers" gripes, and we WERE told the oil would pay
for this thing, but i don't get the indignation expressed at iraq's reluctance
to go along with our wishes...
get the hell outta there and let them put their own people to work...
April 9th, 2008 at 1:00 pmwith THEIR money...
.
The entire Neocon playbook consists of taking money from our treasury and distributing it to their friends, families, and business associates. Anybody who thinks we are being played for 'suckers' is mistaken - as it is exactly what PNAC was created to do. To be a sucker is to not know really what is happening; we know exactly what is happening, we just don't do anything about it.
April 9th, 2008 at 1:02 pmWolfie just noticed this? It has been 7 years of rising prices and the looting of our treasury idiot. If you weren't a made up tv star, you would know that. But there is serious doubt that you are not a character generated program that has an earpiece that asks your questions for you.
April 9th, 2008 at 1:03 pmplease, wolf and his dog on dog action show is one of few "investigative" shows now and it sucks because it is all opinion and entertainment. When are we going to have people that inform of the news and stop with their commentary? I would guess it isn't going to happen.
While I agree that Iraqi oil profits should be used to help rebuilding their country - I also want to see the lucrative no-bid contracts for Halliburton, KBR and others cancelled.
April 9th, 2008 at 1:03 pmIraqis may be bleeding us for all they can get,
but we did destroy their country, which was functioning pretty well under Saddam.
We taxpayers are paying exorbitant, inflated prices to our own well-connected contractors.
The way I see it, the taxpayers are not only seeing their young people dying there, but we are paying for it in every way imaginable.
Bush&Co have found a way to destroy our government (i.e. its social programs) via its treasury while they enhance their own riches. This war was for oil - but not to benefit Americans - but to benefit the oil companies, and personal fortunes. They have used, abused and sacrificed our young men and women, the majority of whom were attracted to service as a way to improve their futures, only to find that if they survive this occupation, their benefits are denied to them.
that was confusing...
"...put their people to work, with THEIR money, AND reparations from US..."
awww... AS IF ...
April 9th, 2008 at 1:03 pmThis is idea is simply another problem in the making. If any day in the future Iraq is "free" from direct USA presence (is a great "if" given the embassy and bases that the USA WILLN'T abbandon happily), and decides to nationalize THEIR OWN resources again, forfeiting the "loans" given by the USA, you'll have another war. You'll hear plety of "those damned Iraqi communists, how DARE to steal OUR oil").
April 9th, 2008 at 1:05 pm* * *
TWO KINDS OF REPUBLICANS:
MILLIONAIRES & SUCKERS
* * *
April 9th, 2008 at 1:07 pm“Blitzer: Lawmakers Privately Asking If Iraqis Are ‘Playing The U.S. Taxpayers For Suckers’ On Reconstruction”
What was the name of that Iraqi lawmaker losing pallets of $ bills? Oh, yes, Bremer.
BTW, almost no Iraqi contractor has been guaranteed a contract to work in reconstruction, as many know, the money has been handed to foreing corporations like KBR, Halliburton, Blackwater, and the sooo many USA entrepreneurs there, profiteering from the war.
Not to mention that Iraqis would have done things for far more cheap prices. You don't need a contractor flown from another country to paint a school or drive a truck with McDonalds for the Green Zone canteen.
April 9th, 2008 at 1:13 pmCongrats give that man the prize. The Middle East studied the players in the US. They saw a idiot son of a President and the greed of Cheney. Knowing it would be impossible to invade the once Great United States, they used the Leaders weaknesses. Daddy Bush a powerful man with a weak coward idiot son, he wanted to be somebody. So the Saudis feed the idiot money everytime he failed. They worked Cheney and made him feel important. Yes 9/11 was a Saudi/US plan and the rest was easy. Bandar Bush was to keep an eye on George W. Bush and report back. Cheney was easy as they let him think he was the power. The Saudis and Iran played the fools without invading the US. Yes folks they hit us in the pocket book as that was our strength. We now have a weak Military and no money. Even China is getting in on the take by loaning the US billions. Remember George W. Bush invited the Taliban to tour the US as his guest. Cheney hired Osama Bin Laden. We see history has shown countries invaded by War this time these guys just walked in without firing a shot. It was almost to easy but the right US idiots were in charge. Now to complete the Mission the Middle East only needs Grandpa McCain to get in or Freshman Senator Obama. Obama might not be to bad as John Kerry will be running the White House and he does have the experience Obama doesn't. We will never have a Clinton in office because that's when the US Economy will be clean up and the World Leaders would gather around and support the US again, we don't want that. Plus the US isn't ready for a qualified female to run the country just stay in the back grown and feed the information to the puppet so he can say he thought of it. Americans have decided they'd rather have an unqualified man as President then a qualified woman. Obama says he'd bring the troops home but his advisers say Obama's policy will have our troops in Iraq for 10 years. Clear sign Obama's only put in to get the votes while someone else will be running the White House. Let's see who will become the USA's new Daddy!
April 9th, 2008 at 1:14 pmWhen we were told the oil would pay for the "war", we shouldn't have ASSumed the Iraqi's were on board with that plan...
April 9th, 2008 at 1:16 pmRepublicans will now have us blaming the Iraqi people for all our problems. Last year it was Mexican people who were destroying us. It's never the Republicans handing money over to Blackwater, Halliburton and KBR or the industry and agribusiness bigwigs making money hand over fist on the backs of illegal immigrants. Nope, it's the Brown People.
April 9th, 2008 at 1:17 pmHow can it be that Iraqis are playing us for suckers? They aren't the ones sitting in the US Congress voting to spend the endless billions that BushCo demands for his needless war. Capitol Hill is home to those who play us for suckers!
April 9th, 2008 at 2:14 pm#41 Shayne
Great point! It's the Iraqi's fault they had WMD, supported Al Qaeda and were plotting to kill W's daddy!
Seriously, these right-wingers blame Al Qaeda and Iran in the same breath then talk about the Iraqis not standing up for themselves... It's tough to stand up when you've had your knees capped.
It's just more excuses to keep themselves from having to take responsibility and to allow the gravy train to keep on rolling. A bunch of flag-waving fascists...
April 9th, 2008 at 2:27 pmIsn't anyone who makes a profit from waging war considered a "war profiteer"?
April 9th, 2008 at 2:37 pmArt, it appears that war profiteering is no longer shameful, in fact, it seems to be considered as smart business management.
April 9th, 2008 at 3:06 pmI don't know when it turned topsy-turvy (I suspect around December 2000), but there it is: Upside down, like everything else.
You're right Marie.
April 9th, 2008 at 3:15 pmIt's almost considered a badge of honor.
Gee, YA THINK???????
April 9th, 2008 at 3:28 pmThe illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq is an International Crime. A war of agression. Iraq did not attack the US and did not have WMD or links to Al-Queida. The invader and occupier has international obligation, specially with the civilian population. They stated that this war was going to cost very little and last just a few weeks... They stole and missmanaged Iraq's money. The war criminal Paul Bramer knows all about missmanagement and stealing money, ask him! USA, keep borowing money and sinking your economy, but stop wining about Tax payers money when the responsability fall entirely within the war criminals in your government and in the Pentagon. After all, all those medals covering the war criminal Pertraues do not come cheap!
April 9th, 2008 at 3:39 pmIf the Tax payers are so concerned, they should surround Congress and the WH and demand the head of the FACISTS who are temporarely in charge! Hague 2009!
April 9th, 2008 at 3:43 pmWeren't we told that Iraqi oil revenues would pay for the reconstruction and that it would cost US taxpayers practically nothing.
Of course, that was a lie. Just one of many related to the invasion and occupation of Iraq.
If Iraq is earning revenue from the sale of its oil, then those monies need to be either put towards reconstruction (so that US contributions can be reduced) or a giant refund should be given back to US taxpayers. Quite frankly, I'd be happy for them to just give us some oil. Add it to the strategic reserve or use it to provide some sort of relief to ridiculously-high gasoline and diesel prices.
Iraq must stand on its own two feet or else it must fail. The peoples of Iraq have to stand up and take care of themselves. Enough is enough already. Most Americans don't want to continue throwing our money and resources (as well as the lives of our troops) into the black hole of Baghdad. Either they get it together and succeed or they keep on arguing and they fail. It is ultimately up to them, and no matter how many troops or for how long we keep them there, the United States will not and can not achieve success or "victory" for Iraq.
April 9th, 2008 at 3:45 pm"find fascinating the contrast between the way right-wingers look at welfare assistance here at home (”rewarding laziness, people on welfare would rather collect checks than work”) and their attitude toward the massive payout to Iraqis on both sides."
exactly...giving american money to american citizens who ARENT killing our troops = bad
giving american money to foreigners who ARE killing our troops= good
don't try to figure it out.. i think hipocracy is pretty much built into republican genes...these days, in any given situation, ask yourself "how could i ask as hipocritcally as possible" and thats how a republican, at least a bush cultist, would act..
April 9th, 2008 at 4:36 pmIf only Condi saved her dressessohbet instead of cleaning them. But in today’s twisted America, I don’t believe anything would happen if George Bush was cetcaught in bed with a dead girl AND a live boy. And it all procedes with a cheeky grin and a sickening smugness that is as arrogant as it is insultingBedava mp3 indir.
April 11th, 2009 at 1:17 pm