Inspector General: Much of Money for Iraq Reconstruction Wasted

The New American ^ | 06 March 2013 | Bob Adelmann

[IbJensen]

(Baghdad)

(Photos of Detroit, Michigan)

[Buckeye McFrog]

Or as I heard an Iraqi explain it once, “Ours is certainly not the most corrupt government on Earth. It’s merely the most corrupt ELECTED government on Earth.”

[driftdiver]

Why are we spending our money to rebuild their country? They have oil money, let them pay for it.

[sickoflibs]

What a disaster!

[Adder]

I can’t wait for the IG’s report on how all of OUR stimulus money was spent...

We are upset about 63 billion with good reason...I am sure we would absolutey SH1T big globs if we ever find out whre all that money went.

[Good luck ever knowing...]

[IbJensen]

We broke their city digging around for Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) but didn’t find any. Now we have to rebuild their nation with the money we borrow from China.

Doesn’t it make you proud to be an American?

WE live in a banana republic, but don’t have to pick any bananas. Even our tomatoes come from Mexico.

[Fighting Irish]

Another Captain Obvious Governmental Moment!

[blueunicorn6]

I think the military leaders screwed up Iraq, but I can at least understand why we went in there. Libya? I’m still waiting for the Democrats to explain why we went in there.

[Mr. K]

OMG your tagline had me giggling so hard the people from the next offices came over to see what was so funny!

[DustyMoment]

While the waste of taxpayer money by the government is NOT news (sadly), it does serve the purpose of shining a light on a fire.

As taxpayers and voters we have an obligation to ourselves and our progeny to demand the overhaul of government spending practices. It has been suggested previously (not by me) that EVERY bill produced by the Congress be specifically targeted to a single item and be linked to a provision in the Constitution that is within the authority of the Congress. To that, I would add that every SPENDING bill also must meet that requirement and, further, that an independent, non-government organization be retained to oversee and audit how our money is spent.

Finally, to end the gleeful wasting of our money by the fools in Congress, it is imperative that strict term limits be imposed not only on the elected members of Congress, but also on the bureaucrats who remain from one administration to the next and are as much a part of the problem as the elected vote buyers!

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

[TADSLOS]

I think the military leaders screwed up Iraq, but I can at least understand why we went in there.

Not so much military leaders on the ground there as the DoS, USAID and Paul Bremer calling the shots for nuance sake. This is what happens when our military leaders buys into nation building as a military and national security strategy. Blood and treasure spent, and for what? It's like pulling your hand out of a bucket of water. In this case, sewer water. But at least Bush got to serve turkey to the troops, so it's all good.

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

Napalm would definitely improve Detroit.

[Roccus]

Senator and Mr. WAR PROFITEER would like to take this opportunity to thank the American taxpayer for fattening their bank accounts.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

There are some hidden twists and turns in this situation.

For example, the US military got its hands on a lot of the stockpile of Saddam’s cash, and being very results oriented, they got good results by directly contracting with Iraqis. The Iraqis learned very quickly that US combat officers are not to be trifled with in business matters, either.

This enraged the Washington bureaucrats because it cut them out of the deal entirely, and they were neither able to skim, or waste, or divert funds to other stuff they wanted.

However, US taxpayer funds were a different matter, and the bureaucrats dove into those pools with their usual “launder and squander” attitude. By the time it made it to J. Paul Bremer and company in country, it had already been skimmed by 25-50%.

Then they piled endless rules on top of the legal use of the rest, seemingly designed to waste another 10-20% to insure that it wasn’t used for “bribes or corruption” (which are terrible sins if they are for foreigners), but for things like importing American products that could be bought for a tenth of the price when made in Iraq.

Then, and only then, was it given to the most corrupt, high officials in Iraq, not to the local level where it might have actually done something.

[IbJensen]

Hey, K, get back to work. I’m retired and I need your tax money! (And so does your president)

[IbJensen]

I liked your comments so much that I appropriated them and sent them to my Senator and Congressman.

[bgill]

Like, uh, duuuuuuh.

[cookcounty]

"....the horrific human costs of the Iraq war — in human suffering, loss of life, and loss of productivity by those innocents in Iraq who found themselves in harm’s way. The best estimate is that 4,487 American lives were lost and more than 32,000 American casualties were suffered during the war, while “estimated violent deaths” among Iraqi civilians exceeded 150,000. "

That last "150,000" figure has to be weighed against the 2 million Iraqis (ref. Bernard Kouchner's Saddam's Black Book) that died violently under Saddam in the pre-2013 invasion years. In an average year, average, 15,000 Iraqis have died violently since the US invasion (and many of them terrorists, not innocents, and the number is declining. albeit slowly). Before US/UN intervention, it was 80,000 Iraqis per year.

I'm not saying the argument about cost should not be argued, I just want to say that ALL the numbers should be included.

Bottom line, an innocent Iraqi is far less likely to meet a violent death now than an innocent was under Saddam.

[Cyber Liberty]

You beat me to it....