Could we rebuild Iraq for free?

[terryg11]

While countries such as France, Germany and Russia have "voiced support of reducing Iraq's burden of debt" have they actually said they will forgive any of the money owed them? How did James Baker's trip go last week anyway?
The reason I ask this is because while all this focus has been on asking other countries to forgive their legitimate "IOUs" they hold from Iraq, no one has bothered to ask Bush and co. why they don't just do all this reconstruction for free? They are counting on the US getting repaid once Iraq is making money in the future, so why don't they start the healing and just come out and say it now, "Iraq doesn't have to repay anything to the US once it gets on it's feet again" ? That shouldn't be so hard should it?

As far as FRance, Germany, Russia and others are concerned, what are we supposed to think if they do forgive those debts? It would be very nice and humane of them, but to actually give this administration that kind of help when all they did was cause those countries much grief in the media (remember all the anti French sentiment that we still hear once in a while?) just wouldn't make much sense.

sorry if this has already been pointed out

[NewJeffCT]

1. Only $1.6 billion

Didn't somebody in the administration say several months back that the reconstruction of Iraq would only cost US taxpayers $1.6 billion?

(the quote that the White House has tried to remove from existence...)

[grannylib]

4. Yup exactly.. and oil money from Iraq itself would pay for the rest...

but now they are trying to scrub the records, as NewJeff says, to cover up their continued lies.

[NewGuy]

2. The administration originally...

proposed exactly that. The entire $40 Billion was supposed to be a grant. Congress got involved and converted part of it to a loan. However, I doubt if it will ever be repaid.

[ProfessorGAC]

3. They Said The Oil Would Pay For It? Wrong!

The most recent analyses show that even if Iraq was brought to Saudi standards of production efficiency, it would still take 16 years to pay for the original estimate of rebuilding. That estimate is now almost 80% higher. You do the math, folks. It's obvious the administration can't.
The Professor

[terryg11]

5. true,

but I don't think that they fought really hard to keep it a grant. Maybe he should bring it back up with congressional leaders

[Zero Gravitas]

6. We Broke it, we should fix it

Hopefully the massive cost to the US taxpayer will make the average moran think twice before supporting a reckless unilateral war the next time around.