The Empire 211

'Bush's war fuels highest level of defense spending since WWII
BY JAMES ROSEN
MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS

As the Iraq war enters a fifth year, the conflict that President Bush's aides once said would all but pay for itself with oil revenues is fueling the highest level of defense spending since World War II.Even with past spending adjusted upward for inflation, the $630 billion provided for the military this year exceeds the highest annual amounts during the Reagan-era defense buildup, the Vietnam War and the Korean War.When lawmakers approve a nearly $100 billion emergency spending bill in the next few weeks, Congress will have appropriated $607 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with about 75 percent going to Iraq, according to a new Congressional Research Service study obtained by McClatchy Newspapers.Less than three months after assuming control of Congress, Democrats are moving away from their election-campaign pledges to restrict or eliminate funding for Iraq."Nobody wants to be labeled anti-military for the crime of cutting the budget," said Winslow Wheeler, an analyst at the Center for Defense Information in Washington. "It makes supporting whatever the military services request a political necessity amongst both Democrats and Republicans."Bush appealed to lawmakers Monday to pass the war supplemental measure without adding troop-withdrawal dates.'

Lees verder: http://www.capitolhillblue.com/cm/content/view/303/159/