Juan Cole: Bush Admin. Spent Billions on an Iraqi Army with 50,000 “ghost” Soldiers

[marmar]

By Juan Cole | –

Iraqi Prime Minister Haydar al-Abadi announced to his parliament on Sunday that inspectors had uncovered 50,000 non-existent soldiers in four divisions of the Iraqi Army. Their pay was presumably being diverted to the officers in the division. This ziggurat of corruption was one reason the army collapsed on June 9, allowing Daesh (what Arabs derisively call ISIL) to take Mosul. The officers had many thousands fewer men than they claimed, and those they did actually have were damned if they were dying so the corrupt officers could go on with their double book keeping.

The Bush Administration spent something like $800 billion in direct costs on the Iraq War, including $20 billion for rebuilding the Iraqi Army after viceroy Paul Bremer abolished . . . the Iraqi Army in 2003. When health care for wounded veterans over their lifetimes is figured in, some suggest the war will have cost trillions of dollars. It is not clear what the US received from that investment. Not security. The Baghdad government is de facto allied with Iran. And the Obama administration has deemed Daesh so much a threat to US national security that President Obama felt it necessary to send the Air Force back in to bomb the country in 2014! The Bush senior administration bombed Iraq in 1991, and the Clinton administration bombed it in 1998. So, in other words, invading and occupying the country seems to have had very little impact on whether it represents a threat to US security in Washington’s eyes, or whether the US feels the need to bomb it..

The $800 bn was largely wasted or stolen. If you want to find it, get a shovel and dig around in back yards in Fairfax County, to which ex-US officials and contractors involved in looting both countries tend to retire.

Apparently no greater waste was incurred than in the $20 bn spent to build a new Iraqi Army. Al-Abadi said that the 50,000 ‘ghost’ soldiers were discovered with just a superficial inquiry, and that were a more thorough inspection to be done, it would find “wonders and marvels.” He lamented that grunts are fighting and dying, while officers were scooping up the military budget. Al-Abadi is said to have made a large number of high ranking officers resign over the scandal. ..................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.juancole.com/2014/12/billions-iraqi-soldiers.html

[Frustratedlady]

1. For real? Am I surprised? NOT!

This money should be found and put back into the treasury. How much did Bush and Cheney pocket?

That entire war needs to be thoroughly investigated and I don't care if it takes years and costs billions. At least it will be worth more than what we got out of the above fiasco.

Not familiar with Juan Cole, but I hope this is true and that a big stink is made out of it.

[Octafish]

2. Padding the Payroll, Chicago Gangster Style

Yeah. Just business, see.

[MH1]

3. "to find it, get a shovel and dig around in back yards in Fairfax County" - BINGO.

There was a reason for this war, and it wasn't WMD.

[DeSwiss]

4. It's probably okay though.....

...because I believe those apparitions disappeared around the same time the $12 Bn in ''war proceeds'' that were on those pallets that were misplaced at the secure airport, with all the soldiers and jets and guns and stuff.



- So if these ''ghosts'' try to make a claim for unpaid back wages against the US government (like the AIG guy whose suing us because he thinks he got insufficient bailout money), I think we got 'em.....

K&R

[dotymed]

5. It is sad that

you couldn't find many Americans that are surprised about this. Sure, many neo-cons would call it a lie but honestly, they would not be surprised.

[jwirr]

6. And who profitted?

[JDPriestly]

7. Could any of that money have gone to finance ISIS?

I don't know how that works, but ????

I have been wondering where ISIS gets all the money for the Snickers (and, on edit, Pringles) from.

[FourScore]

8. Sadly, I give Juan Cole no more than 18 months to walk this earth.

"They" don't like much it when reporters do their actual job.

Heart attack, car accident, plane accident, suicide...

Call me a conspiracy theorist, but I am right sooo often about this. I always think I should've posted my suspicions somewhere. Well, here ya' go!

BTW, I hope I'm wrong. I sure like the guy.

ON EDIT: Maybe he'll be one of the lucky ones and they'll just smear the hell out of him to discredit him. Sometimes they just use that tactic.

[Scuba]

9. Yes, but Bush was decisive, you know? A strong leader.

Not always right, but never in doubt.