The 12-member Superduper Committee (co-chaired by Washington state's Sen. Patty Murray) recently received a letter signed by 70 House members, (pdf) which reads in part:
We understand that you will consider many options when it comes to reaching the benchmarks set by Congress. But too often, when it has come time to reduce spending, the most vulnerable - the working poor and the middle class - have been asked to bear most of the sacrifice. Fortunately, there are other alternatives.
To generate much-needed savings, we strongly urge you to examine the costs of the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. To date, the wars have cost our taxpayers at least $2.3 trillion, with an additional $884 billion in future costs for veterans and their families. This adds up to a total of at least $3.2 trillion. By ending the wars and paying for a safe, orderly, and responsible
redeployment of troops from both Afghanistan and Iraq, we can go a long way toward meeting our fiscal challenges.
As one would expect, one of the signatories was Seattle's rep, Jim McDermott.
2 comments:
When the clamor was on for invading Iraq oh so long ago, I predicted that it would be the straw that breaks our country's financial back.
Joe, it's great to see you in the comments section once more.
Good observation, except it wasn't a straw. It was more like a cinder block.
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