Bush May Need Up to $50 Billion Extra for Iraq

[Barrett808]

Bush May Need Up to $50 Billion Extra for Iraq
By Adam Entous

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said it may need up to $50 billion in extra funding for military operations in Iraq (news - web sites) and Afghanistan (news - web sites) next year -- on top of the $400 billion military budget it sent to Congress on Monday.

The request could throw off President Bush (news - web sites)'s deficit reduction goals.

His fiscal 2005 budget calls for cutting this year's record $521 billion deficit down to $364 billion in 2005, and Bush told reporters he is confident the reductions will be met.

But White House budget director Joshua Bolten acknowledged that these projections do not include spending for ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"So we will need supplemental funding to continue that," Bolten told reporters.

Pressed to estimate the cost for fiscal 2005, Bolten cited current projections for military outlays in 2004 of "well below" $50 billion.

"You should regard that as kind of the upper limit of what might be needed in '05," Bolten said. "Hopefully, the needs will be less. But it will all depend entirely on the security situation."

(more)

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040202/pl_nm/budget_iraq_dc&cid=615&ncid=1480

[Paulie]

1. So the tab is $200 BILLION

Half the Pentagon budget? WOW!

[xray s]

4. 50 billion? 200 billion? 1 trillion? 2.4 trillion?

The budget is spinning out of control wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Bush a "conservative" Heeeehhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!

Wolfowitz says more death in Iraq=success hooooooohaaaaaaaa!!!!

By the time Bush is finally kicked in the ass back to the pig farm the words "conservative" and "Republican" will be profanities.

[nannygoat]

8. Isn't it $79 billion + $87 billion + $50 billion on top of the $400

billion that appears in the budget for defense?

Wake up, America!

[wuushew]

2. No biggy

As Uncle Dick likes to say "Raygun proved that deficits don't matter".

[0007]

3. I got two words & they ain't nice!

Let the godamm lily-white Pentagon come up front and face the nation with a decent act of honesty. Who's doing what to who? Or whom?

[denverbill]

5. Well, isn't that cute.

It's utterly mind-boggling that freepers and Bushbots continue to trust this asshole and his gang. How in the hell can they simply pretend that spending $50 billion in Iraq doesn't count in the budget? Why the hell not just take the entire defense department budget and pretend it doesn't count against the deficit too? Then we'd be ALMOST in balance. ALMOST. Only $100 billion short then.

It's hard to believe the we are borrowing more than the entire cost of our defense budget.

[leetrisck]

6. In bookkeeping terms, where do they

put this money. They say it's not in the budget - then they do it later and everyone forgets it - like last time. If this isn't part of the budget or deficit, where does it end up? In cyber hell - or maybe pentagon hell

[Gin]

7. yep...the 87 billion was for 04....so 50 billion is 05...wonder what

06 will be...I am soooooooo happy the Iraqis are better off according to shrub and the defenders of the invasion...personally I care more about the US being better off.... and we aren't.

[papau]

15. Add 50 to budget, add 50 to deficit - we pretend deficit is ONLY 500+

when it is really 521 plus 50 plus 180 out of Social Security,

or about $750 Billion - or we are short of taxes since the current FIT only pays for 2/3 rds of current outgo. So we give our kids and grandchildren a "birth tax".

[htuttle]

9. I'd be willing to bet it will end up being quite a bit more than that...

...if he gets re-elected.

This administration is fairly notorious for low balling their funding requests before they make them, then jacking them up later.

Anyone remember what Wolfowitz thought that invading Iraq would cost? I think he said it would pay for itself (via oil money), and only require 50,000 troops, tops.

[Mari333]

10. Dont worry! The OIL pumping will pay it all off!

and Im the f*cking Queen of England!
:bounce:

[llmart]

11. What do you expect

from a spoiled rich kid who had everything handed to him and doesn't have a clue about fiscal responsibility?

[lebkuchen]

12. "may" need?

That's optimistic.

[w4rma]

13. Up to? The sky is the limit. (n/t)

[0007]

17. " The sky is the limit" - Funny, that you said that, because .....

when entering Midland Texas from highway 191, there is a sign that sez,

"Welcome to the Home of President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush
Where the sky's the limit"

[if it comes from the whitehouse it must be true]

14. Congress will knock the new budget down

When hardcore republicans refer to chimp as "going over the brink" they see him as a blank check also.

[dusty64]

16. Kick!

:kick:

[Just Me]

18. Each family gets a $50,000 debt in exchange for their $300 tax refund,...

,...heh, heh, heh,...deficits don't matter :mad: