$162-billion bill: Legacy for war or education?

It is the last war funding bill of the Bush administration -- $162 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan -- bringing to $650 billion the amount Congress has appropriated for the Iraq War in the last five years.

But the bill President Bush signed today also represents a concession by the White House to the popularity of an idea by Democratic Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, a former Marine whose son is serving in Iraq. The bill will double the GI Bill to $63 billion, offering tuition, room and board to veterans of the two wars -- and allowing families to transfer unused benefits to spouses or children.

Bush had earlier threatened to veto the plan, calling it too generous and saying it risked a brain drain. Today he praised the bill, saying it will "help us to recruit and reward the best military on the face of the earth."

Activists eager to end the war in Iraq called the compromise a betrayal by House Democrats elected two years ago to stop the war. "Biggest blank check ever,'" said Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Oakland), the only member of Congress in either the House or the Senate, in the days following the 9/11 terror attacks, to vote against authorizing the use of force.

But Bush called the bill a victory for bipartisanship. In a statement from the Oval Office, he said it "shows the American people that even in an election year, Republicans and Democrats can come together to stand behind our troops and their families."

-- Johanna Neuman

Photo: Staff Sgt. Russell Lee Klika / U.S Army

Comments

[ANGRY WITH THE REST]

VOTE LIBERTARIAN!

And if not, at least do some real research on the people you vote for. There are more than just two options. Most people will fall out of the two main parties if they did a little research.

[jonathan]

Does everyone really think the president (bush) has that much power? He has to litterally ask Congress for everything he does...

If you are not satisfied with the government spending, I suggest you put new people into congress that are willing to stand on their own two feet (rather than the current mentality of hiding for cower behind political shells).

[Sam]

162 Billion.....what that little....come on fellow American's we should join together empty our bank accounts, pay more for gas and food for the very very good reason Bush gives us - weapons of mass destruction ops that was wrong...now its National Security.

Now the cost of this war is up to 650Billion.What could have we done with the 650 Billion dollar? I am wondering would it would have made more sense to spend that more to increase security in the US. Hire more cops. Better intelligence.

Of course its unpatriotic to demand- that we don't go to war ; that we withdraw from Iraq. We NEED more Americans to be killed to be patriotic.
What do I know ...just a working American

[Spartan2276]

Hah hah...This is what we deserve for just following the media and doing what they tell us at every turn, Good I hope they suck this country dry even if I live here, well done Bush, you won and deserve a big round of applause for this. As for all the Republicans screaming boooohohoo, well you get what you asked for.

Democrats all get what they deserved for letting the republicans steal both previous elections from them. Hah hah I hope they turn this country upside down so that once again we as a people can do away with all these NeoCons and those whom choose to oppress the people of this country rather than help, But I say good luck with Obama or MCain they are no different. Again well done BUSH/Cheney! To everyone whom chooses to listen, stop following the media and make up your own damn minds(Wake Up!), what a bunch of morons! LOL sometimes I kill myself! LOL

[David]

I agree with 90% of what previous posters said. People who voted for Bush, twice, are just like those fools in the "fool me once, shame you, fool me twice, shame on you" saying. I am neither a Dem or a Rep ("same s..t, different piles" a bumper sticker says), just a reasonable person who wants to live in the great country that USA once was (and I hope will be again, soon). I voted for "anybody but Bush". While the guy deserves some sympathy as a person, the arrogant, foolish and greedy things that his administration has done to this country are the greatest crime against humanity, truly. They invested all this $$ into a very bad "stock" (Iraq) based on personal feelings towards Saddam. The only ones who benefited are Bush's clique. We, the grunts, are paying for this crap, and I think we are deserving it - it's a lesson to not be naive and demand what we elected them for - the American dream, not the American nightmare that we are starting to live in.

P.S. For those still with a sense of humor left, here is the Bushism referred to above:

"There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." GW

[Cactii]

$640 billion to date! Wow - that is unbelievable. I wonder how much of that has been socked away by corruption within the ranks of the administration. I wonder how much that could of helped the American people if it was spent on good things. I wonder how many barrels of oil you could buy for that even at todays prices which probably would not have gone up to this exited level without the invasion of Iraq (4,571,000,000).

Absolutely sick.

[PATRIOT]

All you bleeding heart liberals that rest on your miopic 20/20 hind side laurels, try reading some history before slandering our democratically elected president. Wars generally are not endeavored out of the prophesies of the feeble minded. In the case of almost every modern war fought by these United States of America, including the current global war on terrorism, we aspire to protect our way of life. If you hate America, move out.
If you have something proactive or constructive to say or do to improve the US (a priviledge protected in the Bill of Rights, defended by it's leaders and military), rock on. Otherwise, just go hug a tree.
Have a nice day.

[anonymous]

BUSH IS IN THE POCKETS OF THE BANKERS (THE PEOPLE WHO REALLY OWN THIS COUNTRY AND RUN THEY WAY THEY WANT TO, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS KNOW SOME FACTS AND THINK FOR YOURSELF(instead of what teachers want you to think)

WE HAVE A DEFICIT WHICH MEANS, WE DON'T HAVE MONEY. WE HAVE TO BORROW MONEY(not from our government)BUT FROM THE BANKER, WHOM WE HAVE TO PAY PERCENTAGE TO JUST LIKE HAVING A CREDIT CARD.

THE BANKERS WANT THIS WAR TO GO ON AND MAKE SURE IT DOES JUST LIKE ALL THE OTHER WARS THEY HAVE "CREATED" YES "CREATED" IN ORDER FOR CREEPSSSSS LIKE BUSH IN THE GOVERNMENT TO KEEP THEM UNIMAGINABLY RICH WHILE THE REST OF THE COUNTRY IS RUINED. THEY DO WHAT THE HELL THEY(THE BANKERS) WANT. WHICH IS MAINLY MAKING S*** LOAD OF MONEY$$$$$$$$

THESE BANKERS CONTROL A LOT OF COUNTRIES(yes countries) AND WE ARE NOT THE ONLY ONES WHO ARE GETTING F*****.

[Tom]

I look back and remember a few real quotes.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt once was quoted as saying: "Nothing in politics ever happens by accident; if it happens, you can bet it was planned!"

and Those who Do Not Learn From History Are Doomed to Repeat It.

How quickly we forget the downfall of the Soviet Union was not military force but economic shambles. The USSR collapsed because it's economy failed.

How?
The cost of the Attempts to expand and fighting the war in Afganistan?
Corrupt contracts to friends of the government?

Looking at the external cost and how it has impacted home, that I would bet most in congress are in oil stocks to some degree, That Haliburten not only left the US to protect itself from revealing things to the next leadership (they are now hedquartered in Dubui, and they have shifted into Owning and control of Oil, it all shows a personal greed that blinds the leadership in office.

We are a Republic and we should be a democracy. The Electorial College needs to go, The State Pack of represenative votes needs to go.

The popular vote of the people should be the ONLY vote.

I fear the path we walk the "slippery slope" and Those in power fail to care because they are immune.

Or as we give free grants to failing banks and Passes to illegal wiretaps, it's just another way of saying.. Let them eat Cake!

[rockstardave]

Call me unpatriotic, but I don't support the troops. Hate the killing, love the killers? I don't get it. Maybe they're just doing what they're ordered to do, but how is it any less horrific? We ought to defund their missions in Iraq and Afghanistan so irresponsible executive powers will have no choice but to bring them home.

Besides, 4,000 dead Americans is a tiny figure compared to around a million dead Iraqis (don't forget that the combined numbers--globally--for al-Qaeda, the Taliban, and the Afghan/Iraqi insurgencies are around 70,000, so yes, the vast majority were innocent civilians).

A stupid war with stupid supporters, no realistic end in sight. The collapse of America.

[Gailstrial]

I keep voting and nothing changes.

The war is not about people or gas. It's about lining the pockets of those that supply weapons and everything else.

Nothing will be accomplished by this war. The government and those who pull the strings of the government do not care about the average American...otherwise our nation would not be in the condition it is in.

And those that dare try and change the status quo are always in danger of losing their lives.

I'll keep voting...usless as it seems.

[luvwknd]

HotguygG - dude, whatever you're smoking you had better stop!

Bill Clinton had the national deficit & unemployment at it's lowest in US history so don't start talking BS just cuz you don't know!
Bush is an idiot and he has done NOTHING good for this great country & if you vote McSame, you'll get 4 more years of garbage government just as we've had for the last 8.

Pull you head out of your A$$ and vote Democratic!

[Goodgiven, MD]

On the one hand you have Bush, Cheney, Rumsfled, Rove, etc. On the other you have Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi. All of them elected by the people. Bush, Cheney, et al, lied about going to war. Reid and Pelosi lied about being able to stop it. Reid and Pelosi gave the weakest president in history (approval rating-wise) more money to go to war (650 billion to be exact), they gave away our privacy rights (to the telecoms, just to name one) and they'll all soon give us all an Iranian war. What's better to have Bush and Cheney, et al, on the way out (yea!) or to have Reid and Pelosi for another congress. The two most backless speakers of congress in fifty years. Yeah, America. Rock the Vote! We got what we deserve. Very expensive gas.

[Necessary War]

A painful on-the-ground war in the Middle East is an unfortunate necessity to directly combat the enemies of our society. Remember that the Islamists who escalated attacks against our nation were emboldened (embassies - USS Cole - 9/11) every step of the way as pusilanimous responses met every successful attack, fueling belief in Bin Laden's 'paper tiger' thesis - that the US had become too self satisfied and self interested to do anymore than lob a few politically safe cruise missiles in response. The most painful regret is that the Bush Administration felt that this reality would be too difficult for the American people to comprehend and too US-centric for the international community to support. Thus they resorted to linking Saddam to Al Qaeda, falsifiying nuclear intelligence reports etc. Maybe they thought that the war would be over before these falsehoods would collapse under the weight of reality. I think that the heroes in our military have made a point over the last several years that America is still willing to endure painful and prolonged sacrifice to fight for its right to exist, unfortunately there still is much sacrifice to come - I hope that we have the stomach for it.

[Jed Clampett]

doesn't it seem strange that GWB followed UBL's plan for destruction of america to the letter. In the years after the first attack on the twin towers, UBL released his declaration of war on the US and it's allies. He spelled out how he would lure the giant into a useless war that would drain it's treasury. Are GWB and UBL actually on the same side, just pretending to be enemies in order to garner more power and wealth for their respective families and friends? Today it was reported that the White House has repeatedly thwarted attempts at sending covert missions to find and neutralize Bin Laden. Why would they want to catch the biggest boon to their party since an actor decided to run as Republican? If the Pres was really adamant about finding bin laden, and as he stated in his state of the union speech 'in the war on terror you are either with us or against us', then we should have invaded Pakistan a long time ago instead of giving them $5 billion a year to protect UBL instead of capturing or killing him and his cohorts. To me, it's pretty evident. You merely have to accept the evidence rather than the distortions of it proferred by the press and administration.

[Robert]

Okay,i'm going to make this real simple.Stay with me now.
When a candidate signs up to run for president,he has to choose a party,right.I hope i haven't lost anybody at this point yet(have to question this because somehow Bush made it to office with these same people here i'm trying to address,anyway let's get back to the point,So when that choice is made of party affiliation,he has now signed on to represent the current ideology of that party(right).So when John McCain signed his name to run as a candidate for the Republican Party,somehow they all believe they can sell him with promoting this Maverick crap,if that was the case he should have run as an Independent.If John McCain really wants to distance himself from Bush,he should" HAVE NOT SIGNED ON AS A REPUBLICAN"..Please read those words over until you get them,it's very important,i emplore you to do the right thing this time....

[Firoz]

Bush just wanted to send american to battlefield for whole life. He is a hitler of this generation.

[Robert]

Okay,i'm going to make this real simple.Stay with me now.
When a candidate signs up to run for president,he has to choose a party,right.I hope i haven't lost anybody at this point yet(have to question this because somehow Bush made it to office with these same people here i'm trying to address,anyway let's get back to the point,So when that choice is made of party affiliation,he has now signed on to represent the current ideology of that party(right).So when John McCain signed his name to run as a candidate for the Republican Party,somehow they all believe they can sell him with promoting this Maverick crap,if that was the case he should have run as an Independent.If John McCain really wants to distance himself from Bush,he should" HAVE NOT SIGNED ON AS A REPUBLICAN"..Please read those words over until you get them,it's very important,i emplore you to do the right thing this time....

[ken]

Now that Phase 2 of the Senate intellingence report has confirmed that our government knew ahead of time that all the reasons we had to go to war with Irag were false. And give the fact that the declaration for the war against Afganistan was signed Sept 10th, one day prior to 9-11.

Its pretty obvious this war was by choice.

In my mind nothing of this situation can ever be solved until the real reason for these wars is made publis and the real people responisible delt with. I talking about the truth about who attacked us on 9-11. Until that issue is resolved and and 9-11 is shown for what it really was a False Flag Operation performed by the bush/cheaney administration, so they could have their never ending War on Terror.

[GW]

eh, just put it on the nations MasterCard...let the no good for nothing
young kids pay for it later! I'm glad I won't be around to see that...
LOL!

[USMC Vet]

I AM A 23 YEAR OLD SINGLE VETERAN THAT LIVES ALONE AND HAS NO FAMILY TO ASK FOR HELP AND SINCE MY HONORABLE DISCHARGE FROM THE MARINE CORPS LAST FALL I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO FIND A JOB AND I HAVE BEEN EVICTED FROM MY APARTMENT 3 TIMES IN 7 MONTHS AND THIS NEW GI BILL WILL HELP ME AND ALL THOSE VETERANS OUT THERE IN A SIMILAR SITUATION SO I AM VERY THANKFUL FOR THIS...

[joe]

Hey I agree we never should have gone to Iraq. But the fact is we ARE there
and we ARE making progress so pulling out now would be a worse mistake.
We have corrected the many mistakes we made in the beginning and we finally
have competent people running the war. I believe if we were to pull out now
and everything then went to hell all that our troops have sacraficed so far would be in vain.

[PatriotismVPropaganda]

Rationalization by a bleeding-heart conservative, "if you don't like it, leave".

1. Do you know how difficult it is to leave this country? Harder than it is to gain citizenship
2. Bush was not "voted" in. They rigged both elections.
3. Just because you are wrong, doesn't make the rest of us "unpatriotic"
4. "PATRIOT" appears to forget that this administration shat upon the constitution, and continues to do so.

[south]

That war is a money pit. 650 billion dollars for a war. There are 28 million people in Iraq. That means the US spent about $23,000 dollars for every man, woman and child in Iraq. How much does the US government spend on people living in the US? Less than 1000 dollars per person.

[Jeff]

I am a Marine and was part of this whole mess when it started. I'm out now and would appreciate a little "thanks for your service to your country." I believe that this new bill does just that. I don't see it as aiding the war machine, even though it is touted as a great tool to help with recruitment and to get service members to stay in.

If you are going to slam the new bill because "it is only helping the war," then please consider what good it is doing the present and former service members as well as their families that had to be a part of the war in the first place. I know I am going to use the bill to every bit of it's worth and strive to give back to our bruised economy. And by the way, I am going to vote Democrat.