Bush pulls the plug on Iraq reconstruction

[tocqueville]

$18bn funding to stop at end of year

Suzanne Goldenberg in Washington
Tuesday January 3, 2006
The Guardian


The Bush administration has scaled back its ambitions to rebuild Iraq from the devastation wrought by war and dictatorship and does not intend to seek new funds for reconstruction, it emerged yesterday.

In a decision that will be seen as a retreat from a promise by President George Bush to give Iraq the best infrastructure in the region, administration officials say they will not seek reconstruction funds when the budget request is presented to Congress next month, the Washington Post reported yesterday.

The $18.4bn (£10.6bn) allocation is scheduled to run out in June 2007. The move will be seen by critics as further evidence of the administration's failure to plan for the aftermath of the war.

A decision not to renew the reconstruction programme would leave Iraq with the burden of tens of billions of dollars in unfinished projects, and an oil industry and electrical grid that have yet to return to pre-war production levels.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1676911,00.html
_______________________________________________________________
feel screwed Iraq !

[blueinindiana]

1. Sounds ... Retreat in Defeat .. to me...

I hate GOP talking points designed for numb skulls who can not think on their own.

[savemefromdumbya]

2. Bush said no nation building in the 2000 election

now he's changed his mind again?

[Deja Q]

6. It is easier to destroy than to create.

Perhaps Iran will be the first example of this.

And Iran's saber-rattling and even genuine concern by the EU regarding them, it's not going to be a utilateral thing this time around. And unlike Iraq, Iran is more likely to be genuine. Hence the EU even speaking up.

Unfortunately, the reality that Iraq was no imminent threat (and that was the sole reason for going to war against them in the first place; and that's the ONLY one that counts in politics or anything else when it comes to human life on this scale) will hamper US credibility too.

I dunno. But Iran is definitely not going to be a repeat of Iraq. Assuming it happens at all.

[Aviation Pro]

3. Guess the Chimp got bored again.

Somebody check this 60-year old adolescent for ADD.

[NanceGreggs]

4. Financial 'cut & run' ...

Halliburton has made its billions ... what's the point in doing anything more?

[babylonsister]

5. If I were an Iraqi, I would be irate. Knock it down, and then

don't bother to rebuild, while killing 10's of 1,000's in the process?
This is another travesty; add it to the rest.

[Deja Q]

7. Maybe that's why they're starting to attack India.

They can't come over to the US, so they will attack by proxy. India is more than a mere perfect target. The Indians clearly do what they're told and wouldn't know how to defend themselves if they didn't have big nukes to waggle in front of Pakistan with. Not only does that make them a perfect target in terms of acquiring nasty weapons, they can take all the IT resources the US has moved over there too. And that includes more confidential information I care to even fathom at this point. War isn't about who has the bigger weapon. It's about knowledge. And the US has shown how dumb it is once again. You cannot offshore your own infrastructure as if there aren't any real risks. And we've fallen for it. Well, they. We don't have a say into what they do. And they do things for money, which means they will cut corners. Worst of all, the Indian people had no part in this nightmarish situation until their businessmen allowed the offshoring.

Man, now I'm depressed.

[zapp]

8. Yes it might succeed if fully funded. Cant have that,.

These bastards blow up stuff and cant rebuild it- cause the money doesnt make it to contractors.

[DemonFighterLives]

9. Plenty of money for bombs

but putting stuff back the way we found it- no can do.
:argh:

[SPKrazy]

10. $18.4bn=£10.6bn, Wow!

Has the Pound kicked the dollar's ass or what?

[ladjf]

11. And the Gulf Coast as well.