Bush wants 245 Billion more of our dollars

[Diamond Dandy]

Thiis will bring the total cost for this fiasco to over 700 Billion. I think it will be a struggle to get it from this congress, unless he is willing to show them areas he can cut spending or increase taxes to pay for it. What are your thoughts? Will this congress make him pay to play for the first time since the invasion?

[Hearsay]

They'll give it to him. Most of the Congresspersons have said that we can't just pull out, so failing to vote for troop funding is desecrating hallowed ground politically. There will be very few strings attached.

[Frances Bavier]

I'm about halfway to Hearsay on this one. I think Congress will give him the money (or almost all of it), but I do believe that they will try to allocate it for certain items, in an attempt to exercise some control of how it is spent.

 

 

Frances

[Sting]

I also think Congress will give him the money. They will trash him publicly over the war, but they no politically they can't leave our troops haging. It's the ultimate in playing both sides...

 

My question in this what if the war starts taking a turn for the better? Or, What if OBL turns up captured one day? Big IFS, but... where will all those candidates who staked such a big anti war position go?

[Frances Bavier]

I also think Congress will give him the money. They will trash him publicly over the war, but they no politically they can't leave our troops haging. It's the ultimate in playing both sides...

 

My question in this what if the war starts taking a turn for the better? Or, What if OBL turns up captured one day? Big IFS, but... where will all those candidates who staked such a big anti war position go?

 

I don't see the idea of Congress disagreeing with Bush on the issue of the "surge" and yet not wanting to defund the troops that are in the field as "playing both sides". They are two separate issues. I'll make one prediction - if this surge doesn't produce clear progress, the war will be over before he gets out of office. I don't see this Congress funding the war beyond the request that Bush has just put in front of them.

 

As for your two questions:

If the war takes a SIGNIFICANT turn for the better, then I would expect Congress to rethink their position, and make an informed decision based on the changing situation in Iraq.

 

If Osama Bin Laden turns up dead, it will have absolutely no effect on what is going on in Iraq. The truth is, after almost 4 years of the Iraq war, terrorism has now grown to the point that Bin Laden (while still important) is not the only person that is capable of running large scale Al-Qaeda operations.

 

 

Frances

[RebelK]

I don't see the idea of Congress disagreeing with Bush on the issue of the "surge" and yet not wanting to defund the troops that are in the field as "playing both sides". They are two separate issues. I'll make one prediction - if this surge doesn't produce clear progress, the war will be over before he gets out of office. I don't see this Congress funding the war beyond the request that Bush has just put in front of them.

 

As for your two questions:

If the war takes a SIGNIFICANT turn for the better, then I would expect Congress to rethink their position, and make an informed decision based on the changing situation in Iraq.

 

If Osama Bin Laden turns up dead, it will have absolutely no effect on what is going on in Iraq. The truth is, after almost 4 years of the Iraq war, terrorism has now grown to the point that Bin Laden (while still important) is not the only person that is capable of running large scale Al-Qaeda operations.

 

 

Frances

Scary isn't it. Did we help them with their progress with the war or would they have gotten to this point without our help?

[75center]

They would FAR exceed their current abilities if we hadn't "helped".

[Run To State]

They would FAR exceed their current abilities if we hadn't "helped".

Bingo! :thumb:

[Diamond Dandy]

They would FAR exceed their current abilities if we hadn't "helped".

 

Yep....we helped create thousands of more terrorist, we helped every single nation in the world to lose any fear, respect or sympathy that they had for America after 9-11, we helped spend 700 Billion tax dollars that could have spent much more wisely, we helped 3000 young people to their early grave, we helped another 20,000 learn to use their new arms and legs,we helped to totally destroy a country that never attacked America or Americans. We helped OBL live to continue his stratogy in Afganistan. We helped the Defense Department completely deplete it's resources of available soliders,

we helped a handful of contractors become super rich, we helped the Mid East become more unstable then it has ever been....we helped.

[Frances Bavier]

Yep....we helped create thousands of more terrorist, we helped every single nation in the world to lose any fear, respect or sympathy that they had for America after 9-11, we helped spend 700 Billion tax dollars that could have spent much more wisely, we helped 3000 young people to their early grave, we helped another 20,000 learn to use their new arms and legs,we helped to totally destroy a country that never attacked America or Americans. We helped OBL live to continue his stratogy in Afganistan. We helped the Defense Department completely deplete it's resources of available soliders,

we helped a handful of contractors become super rich, we helped the Mid East become more unstable then it has ever been....we helped.

 

For Pete's sake, Diamond Dandy - everyone knows that all of those things are directly the fault of the liberals. Just because they were in the minority in Congress doesn't mean that it wasn't their fault.

 

 

 

Frances

[Run To State]

Yep....we helped create thousands of more terrorist, we helped every single nation in the world to lose any fear, respect or sympathy that they had for America after 9-11, we helped spend 700 Billion tax dollars that could have spent much more wisely, we helped 3000 young people to their early grave, we helped another 20,000 learn to use their new arms and legs,we helped to totally destroy a country that never attacked America or Americans. We helped OBL live to continue his stratogy in Afganistan. We helped the Defense Department completely deplete it's resources of available soliders,

we helped a handful of contractors become super rich, we helped the Mid East become more unstable then it has ever been....we helped.

When you say "we" you are including those nations that had respect or sympathy for America after 9-11. You're also including the Democrats that you so fondly support, as they gave the clear go sign for this war.

[H]

They would FAR exceed their current abilities if we hadn't "helped".

 

Really? What's that opinion based on? The National Intelligence Estimate has reported that the Iraq war has become a rallying cry for Jihadists and a tremendous recruiting tool for radical Islam. The final, teetering justification for the war (creating a beacon of democracy in the Middle East) is about as likely now as 25 cent a gallon gasoline. I know some desperately want to believe Bush's war was the right decision, but at some point you've got to join the rest of us in reality.

[H]

When you say "we" you are including those nations that had respect or sympathy for America after 9-11. You're also including the Democrats that you so fondly support, as they gave the clear go sign for this war.

 

The final responsibility for ordering the Iraq invasion rests squarely with GWB. The Congress gave him the authority to use military force--it didn't order the invasion and it didn't completely mismanage the last 4 years by deploying far too few troops, failing to secure the borders, failing to secure the weapons caches, failing to protect the insfrastructure, disbanding the Iraqi civilian administration, and failing to redevelop the Iraqi economy. The Congress has given Bush every emergency funding request he has asked for since from the beginning. And his administration has bungled the war in every conceivable way. He will clearly bear the burden of this failure in the history books in 5, 10, 100 years.

[Diamond Dandy]

For Pete's sake, Diamond Dandy - everyone knows that all of those things are directly the fault of the liberals. Just because they were in the minority in Congress doesn't mean that it wasn't their fault.

 

 

 

Frances

 

Heck...the way they packaged it and sold it, by marching Powell front and center (because he had some credibility) to the floor of the UN...then the Aluminum tube speach from Commie Rice, then the msuhroom clouds and yellow cake (from Africa) from Georgie himself, to the Slam Dunk from the CIA to the Flowers and Candy from that unemployed guy (Rumsfeld) to the six days, six weeks but certainly not six months (again from that umemployed guy)...

 

I almost believed it...for about five minutes until I started to think how they would deliver this death and destruction, since they only had short range missels, no Navy or Air Force....then I thought, na baby na.

[Hearsay]

Bardstown's bourbon economy will be doing well, because apparently several in this thread have spiked their Kool-Aid for the Super Bowl.