U.S. Rep. Ed Case, D-rural O’ahu, Neighbor Islands, said the total cost of war with Iraq, including reconstruction in that country, will be around $200 billion. Debate continues in Congress, he said, not only about the cost of war, but
U.S. Rep. Ed Case, D-rural O’ahu, Neighbor Islands, said the total cost of war with Iraq, including reconstruction in that country, will be around $200 billion.
Debate continues in Congress, he said, not only about the cost of war, but of the form U.S. involvement will take in rebuilding the country and its government.
“The cost of this war is not in this budget,” Case said. “We haven’t even talked about the cost of war beyond one month” of warfare, let alone reconstruction costs, he added.
Congressional discussion about U.S. involvement in the transition of Iraq from a dictatorship to a democracy has been equally intense, Case said.
Two general schools of thought have emerged: the first favors a long-term, military presence, lasting from five to 10 years, as happened in Japan after WWII; the second is that U.S. forces shouldn’t have been in Iraq in the first place, so let’s get them out as quickly as possible, and let the Iraqi people rebuild on their own, he said.
A “middle-ground” belief, which Case favors and thinks will eventually be agreed upon in Congress, is that a U.S. presence is necessary to ensure an orderly transition, and after installing a government of the Iraqi people’s choosing, U.S. forces should pull back and let United Nations’ personnel take over.
Regarding Middle East peace in general, Case is sure it won’t happen unless the United States takes a lead role in the process, supporting diplomatic initiatives with military might if necessary.
