So what is the cost of maintaining the military involved in this war and their equipment if they were not in Iraq, i.e. stationed somewhere else in the world or just on their bases in the U.S.? They all still have to be paid, there still has to be eqipment for training and drill and they still have to maintain the equipment and buy new stuff. So how much is the difference? Isn’t that the real cost of the war?
Excellent point, which is supposedly allowed for in this source from the Congressional Research Service.
But there are so many games that can be played with the numbers by somebody with an ax to grind that your guess is as good as mine.