Hank Paulson, naked emperor
My syndicated column this week rips Hapless Hank Paulson and his flock of sheeple in Washington. The latest headlines suggest that the auto bailout is in trouble. But don’t get your hopes up too high. Politicians will cave. And no matter what euphemism they use, you will pay for it.
***
Hank Paulson, naked emperor
by Michelle Malkin
Creators Syndicate
Copyright 2008
Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson finally confirmed what lonely bailout opponents tried to tell the American public all along: The man doesn’t know what the hell he’s doing.
Paulson held a bazooka to taxpayers’ heads. He groveled on his knees in front of Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He lured leaders from both political parties into linking arms in a panicked Chicken Little line dance for the beleaguered mortgage industry. Paulson demanded an unprecedented $700 billion troubled assets relief program for the good of the country. For the health of the housing market. For the survival of the economy. No time for deliberation. No time to review the failures of such interventionist approaches around the world. Now, now, now!
And now? The pulled-out-of-the-posterior “$700 billion” price tag has ballooned into the trillions. The “mortgage industry rescue” has expanded to banks, insurance companies, automakers, credit card companies, and possibly the entire national volume of consumer lending. Oh, and that vaunted “TARP” component, Paulson admitted this week, is nothing but a four-letter-word that rhymes with TRAP.
In September, Paulson offered his lofty pledge: “The ultimate taxpayer protection will be the stability this troubled asset relief program provides to our financial system, even as it will involve a significant investment of taxpayer dollars. I am convinced that this bold approach will cost American families far less than the alternative – a continuing series of financial institution failures and frozen credit markets unable to fund economic expansion.” Two months later, Paulson’s conviction melted faster than microwaved butter. “Our assessment at this time is that this is not the most effective way to use TARP funds,” he sheepishly told the nation Wednesday.
Hey, who died and put Emily “Never mind” Litella in charge of the economy?
Paulson explained at his non-mea culpa press conference that he knew when the bailout was signed that it wasn’t going to work as sold: “It was clear to me by the time the bill was signed on October 3rd that we needed to act quickly and forcefully, and that purchasing troubled assets—our initial focus—would take time to implement and would not be sufficient given the severity of the problem.”
Now he tells us? Would have been nice if he had made this clear — quickly, forcefully, and publicly — to the Beltway stooges who were pulling the TARP over our eyes. So much for Paulson’s earnest transparency commitments on the Hill.
Members of Congress who let themselves be bullied into switching their votes on the bailout should be experiencing the biggest case of buyers’ remorse in U.S. history. They fell for what Nobel Prize-winning economist F.A. Hayek called “the fatal conceit” — the disastrous idea that a federal bureaucrat has the knowledge to do a better job than the private market in organizing and directing an economy. They gave unchecked power to a single government official without a clue. Wielding his enormous authority, Paulson is desperately throwing our money at banks in a futile attempt to convince them to lend. Instead, those banks are either hoarding the cash or acquiring more assets. In other words: Paulson is helping the banks that were “too big to fail” grow even bigger with taxpayer backing. Swell.
The White House says: “We’ll just trust our treasury secretary to implement the program.” President Bush insists “government’s role will be limited and temporary.” Meanwhile, Democrat Rep. Barney Frank is shrugging off the lack of bailout disclosure by both the Federal Reserve and Treasury. But as I reminded readers before this latest bait-and-switch admission, Hank Paulson is not to be trusted. I repeat:
This is the man who proclaimed the subprime crisis “largely contained” in April 2007; “near the bottom” in May 2007; and “largely contained” again in August 2007. This is the man who pledged that he had “no interest in bailing out lenders or property speculators” in October 2007 and couldn’t “think of any situation where the backdrop of the global economy was as healthy as it is today.” This is the man who patted himself on the back for refusing to “put taxpayer money on the line” to rescue Lehman Brothers on Sept. 15 – and then turned around the next day and engineered the $85 billion taxpayer-funded bailout of AIG. This is the man who vowed he had “no plans to insert money” into Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac –and then turned around and committed $200 billion in capital and credit lines to those corrupt, bloated, crumbling institutions. This is the man who declared “the worst is likely to be behind us” in May 2008.
Emperor Paulson’s bipartisan courtiers in Congress berated anyone who dared challenge his wisdom. Minority Leader John Boehner sniffed: “This is no time for ideological purity.” Well, ideological pollution begat this mess. It’s time for a fiscal conservative counterinsurgency to disrobe and disarm the charlatans before they do more harm.
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- Bloodthirsty Liberal » Bail, Not Bailout
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- Communists, Obama, and the Constitution « I Took The Red Pill (and escaped the Matrix)
- The Crap Sandwich Has a New Flavor « Trust, But Verify
- Bailout Blues « Rachel Younger Daughter
- Garden State Patriot | Malkin: Hank Paulson, Naked Emperor
- Paulson Lied–Economy Died or Bailout Bolshevik Bureaucrats Corrupt Capitalism Credit China « Pronk Palisades
- Michelle Malkin » The bailout Chicken Littles rediscover their heads
- Bailout bait & switch — Cranach: The Blog of Veith
- The Bush Bailout Will Support Socialism In America For One Hundred Years | Neolibertarian at large
- Hank Paulson, naked emperor « Conservative Thoughts and Profundity
- TARP, Paulson, and the Pump Fake - Ford Mustang Forums
- Kerfuffles :: Taxpayers - Save Our Jobs :: November :: 2008
- Wollt Ihr Den Totalen Sozialismus? » Winds Of Jihad
- There's My Two Cents
- The White House ATM « Quipster
- Dave Lucas' Notes » Hank Paulson: America Turns It's Lonely Wallets To You!
- Rahm Emanuel: “Sieg heil, mein Fuhrer!” « Mark Epstein
- Once again, Europe taking the lead in international security affairs » A Couple Things » A couple things about politics, sports, travel, and other stuff.
- WO’s Daily Roundup | Without Objection
- Bail and Switch | BobMaistros.com
- Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe Calls Out Hank Paulson : The Conservative Beacon
- Michelle Malkin » Road to GOP redemption: Roll back the bailouts, draw a line in the sand
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- Here a trillion, there a trillion… « Hope for America Coalition: Join the Freedom Revolution
- Michelle Malkin » Borrow. Spend. Panic. Repeat.
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- The Skepticrats » I always thought they were recession-proof.
- The Definition of Insanity « Hope for America Coalition: Join the Freedom Revolution
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- No Surprise: The “bailout bill” is falling apart | Sequence Inc. Fraud Files Blog
- Michelle Malkin » So, Paulson lied? He’s misled America from Day One
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Categories: Subprime crisis
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tar.and.feather.
Toxic assets…cue Britney Spears.
We already have a national sales tax… You just don’t see it, because it’s hidden in the price of goods and services.
Hey, I here that President elect Obama is going to make Richard S. Fuld, Jr. his Treasury Secretary. After destroying Lehman Brothers, Fuld is perfectly positioned to succeed Paulson at Treasury. Fuld destroyed Lehman Brothers after the firm prospered for 158 years. So that makes him perfect for Treasury. One flop follows another.
Maybe Stan O’Neal can be Fuld’s deputy secretary.
corkie must have invested heavily in K-Y® Brand Jelly, and a Hank Paulson anal vibrator!
The Republican Administration???
Are you freakin kidding me???
You may want to look back at the rule of Barney Frank on the Banking Committee and other democrats that fostered the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac disease and their successful attempts to block reform of those organizations.
Not to mention the push Dems and some RINO’s engaged in to lower the mortgage standards at Fannie and Freddie.
THAT is the cause of this crisis.
I’m tired of talk, I want action.
These folks are our only hope.
GOVERNORS
“Hey, who died and put Emily “Never mind” Litella in charge of the economy?”
Me thinks “
JaneHank,you ignorant slut.” Is appropriate.Well, if you weren’t ON-THE-GRID before, you certainly are now. Have you noticed that unmarked panel van that is parked just down the street from you?
(just fyi, if you bring them something to eat and put a bananna in their tail-pipe you still have a chance to get away. i would tell you not to tell them that I told you, but they already know)
Misscheryl, AGREED.
What do yo think of post #93? Time to start stirring the pot.
Maybe he’s trying to stall this long enough until after Obama is sworn in for whatever reasons?
Those Japanese guys can sure make tiny electronics…
I hate Congress.
You better define ACTION. Dear Leader was voted in on CHANGE, without explaining or being asked what kind of change he meant.
You Don’t Say!
…
You’re doing a fine job
BrowniePaulie.My first suggestion is to not communicate openly on a blog. Someone earlier spoke of communicating via the internet but not on an open forum..that’s the first thing. We need to form a way to communicate discreetly. I am rather technologically challenged. I am not interested in arguing, discussing or speaking to people who do not share my views and I don’t care who thinks that right or fair.
I will make mention of a person who was well known in Michigan in the hunting community. He actually was a spokesman for outdoorsmen and women. He came out once in support of a gun ban. Within days he was fired from his postion as spokesman and his reputation ruined. This was accomplished via the internet and the networking it provided, we can do the same.
fly I agree that we must start communicating our wishes via letters, e-mail, phone calls. We need to flood our representatives and we need to be as obnoxious as possible about getting our message out. We are done! Words are noise, but actions thunder and don’t forget it!
Gorebal warming was the largest rip-off in human history until this dumb a$$ was appointed by another dumb a$$ to fix the problem he was partially responsible for making.
Our world is upside down and it’s going to get ugly folks, really ugly.
I will never submit,NEVER!
I love my country too much.
franksalterego
You missed my point of the National sales tax.
Here is the link . Please read.
http://www.fairtax.org/site/PageServer
At the time of the bailout debate, Darryl Issa stated that one of the reasons he was against the bailout was that the fed already had the means to add liquidity to the market.
Apparently, after the bailout passed, the fed has done exactly what Issa suggested, to the tune of 2 trillion, and the bailout has turned into a handout program.
I suspect that over time we will find out what the underlying reasons for the bailout that are not being communicated today.
Unfortunately this “fair tax” is double taxation. We have had our income taxed, and then with this we would be taxed once again when we spend it. It will amount to about a 28 percent tax and will have to include rents and sales of houses. It will destroy retirees living off of 401K plans, ssn and savings accounts.
Henry Paulson and John McCain …part of Team Obama
Mister P, you are wrong about the Fair Tax.
It would eliminate income taxes, social security taxes medicare, capital gains and replace with one single tax.
I think it’s a great idea but doesn’t stand a snowball’s chanve in Hades.
You have more trust in the intellectual honesty of politicians than I do. I can’t imagine them giving up all those other taxes when implementing a national sales tax. (Wouldn’t that tax be unconstitutional? I haven’t looked. Not that it matters to the Big Government types.)
i do sometimes wonder if the bush one world conspiracy stuff is true. no one can be this naive. if i stand out in front of my house with a bag full of money handing out samples, i know everyone in the neighborhood will come running. didn’t bush and paulson get that message in third grade when you brought candy for holloween.
We all know that Bush-mccain-et.al are in cahoots w/internationalists like the dear Rothchild (sp) aristocracy group—
We had a REVOLUTION to get rid of the aristocracy and class pin-holing..
George Washington was correct in saying that the new US should stay out of the petty affairs of europe -
C-CS
You have to wonder if it is conspiracy or just unbelievable stupidity. Of course, these abject idiots may be conspiring….
More thoughts on the subject here.
That is the double taxation. I have already paid those other taxes. Now I am retiring, and you want to tax my savings, 401K, etc when I spend them.
I am amazed how the fair tax people never take this in consideration.
Shop in Chinatown…
How do we impeach the Sec. Treas. AND THE GUY WHO APPOINTED HIM?? And everyone who VOTED for the crapola sandwich? (not my Congressman, bless his heart!)
If this scenario had been pitched as a TV script a year or two ago, or even a few months ago, the studio would have laughed it off as too incredulous.
Wake me up, somebody.
NEVER use a credit card in Chinatown! Cash only. Dont ask. Just trust me. Walk away. You dont know me.
On November 14th, 2008 at 10:56 am, Marc said:
What if Fuld is part of the Vast LEFT-Wing Conspiracy…
a Communist who actually WANTED to destroy Lehman Brothers.
Take a look at which companies have been winners and which have been losers, and what role Paulson has played in deciding who wins and who loses.
On November 14th, 2008 at 12:54 pm, Freddy said:
The point of the bailout is to create an uneven playing field, where the Treasury Secretary gets to pick who gets gobs of cash and who doesn’t. The companies that don’t get gobs of cash will have a very hard time competing with those who do.
The Communists are bringing Capitalist companies to their knees, one by one. You either do what they say, or they put you out of business.
It was not to long ago when people who robbed others were arrested. It appears some folks are above the law.
I wonder, how this helps the North American Union.
Mister P, you will pay tax on 401(k) withdrawals and/or IRA withdrawals unless they were Roth IRAs under the present system. You haven’t been taxed on those yet. Some pensions are taxable now.
In addition to that, the fair tax sends everyone a check each month to cover the tax that would have been paid by the low income.
It’s only an intellectual discussion, anyhow.
There is very few law makers that would support this because it would eliminate the influence they can sell now
Who do you call when it’s the police that are robbing you?
Has anyone else heard that ABC News asked their staffers not to wear American flag lapel pins or red, white, and blue ribbons?
Hank –
That running around naked?
It isn’t a good look for you.
Paulson needs to be run out on a rail.
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
A bit Off-topic, but related (and no better thread to post this comment)
The Socialists get plenty of free coverage in the media, while patriots must raise $90,000 for a single full-page ad to raise serious Constitutional questions about Obama’s eligibility.
Everyone who thinks Paulson is an idiot, you are wrong. Never once underestimate someone in a position like that. The DemoCommies have screwed up for the last 8 years by thinking Bush was not smart and he repeatedly beat them to death with their own conceit.
All of this is happening for a reason, we simply do not know the entire picture.
I mean, hey, the DemoCommies have been screaming that Bush has run us in to a deficit. However, a “crisis” like this shows up and suddenly 2 Trillion dollars magically appear.. Within days, our Commie congress has figured out that they don’t actually have to use the money for it’s intended purpose.
Hmmmmmmm, What to they do with it? Invest in alternative energy? Pay off every mortgage in the USA (which would make the banks solvent and stop the liquidity crisis immediately)? Pay slavery reparations? Fix Social Security? Prop up Medicare/Medicaid? Give Al gore a big chunk of cash in exchange for never seeing his ugly mug again? Come up with a way to effectively fight terror? The answer to all of these questions and more is noooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!
They wanted to give it to the car companies. Well, Toyota turned a profit last year. Let’s ask ourselves why they do and no one else can. The whole “gas guzzler” thing isn’t the issue. The Land Cruiser is a thirsty beast and sells like hotcakes.
Toyota’s secret, much like Honda’s, is that the cars they produce have a secret factor US car makers haven’t concerned themselves with in a while – reliability. People know they can buy a Toyota and the thing will start each time the turn the key.
BTW, although Japanese owned, Toyota, Honda, Kia and most major foreign car companies build in the US and employ tens of thousands.
But I digress..
For those of you who blame Bush – remember this – Bush’s overall economic strategy has been a continuation of Clinton’s. Paulson is a latecomer. Mr. Greenspan served under Both Bush’s and Clinton. His policy of low, low interest rates and easy credit have gone unchanged until the very recent past. And, for the most part, it worked. Well, it worked until the property values and automobile costs far outstripped inflation in a value to value comparison. Then, the balloons started hitting and banks were left with 1 million dollar mortgages on houses that had an actual value of $200K. The bank should go out of business. Giving them free money only encourages this behavior.
All of you should remember very well that the economy was doing just fine – even with terrorist attacks, 2 wars and a hostile MSM talking smack every day.. that is, until the DemoCommies took control of Congress 2 years ago. It has been a steep spiral economically since.
And why is this? Confidence. Why would any capitalist have confidence in our system when it is being steered by Communists?
Okay I’m not replying to anyone per sey. But why is it that people seem to think the White house controls the national Economy? I mean last I looked it was a back assward number of groups and factors. D.C. Isn’t the Kremlin, so short of throwing out cash it has no control.
Strip away the bailout hysteria to discover what’s going on — politically directed tax cuts.
For any interesting exercise, substitute tax cuts for bailouts and see how it reads…
If taxcuts are good for some, why not for all?
In that picture Michelle used, Paulson looks like that eagle Muppet.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n174/sybil4/muppets/eagle_muppet.jpg
No, he’s a genius! How could an idiot sell a $700+ Billion bailout plan by getting Congress to buy into it(with taxpayer money) without stipulating how it could be used by the institutions who bankrupted themselves through risky investments.
And this is due to what? Weren’t we told that there would be transparency. Hank and his buddies must have laughed their asses off over that one.
It’s difficult to have confidence, when after little more than a month, we’re told that the original plan has been abandoned, and details on the new plan are forthcoming, and…nevermind.
If you’re a true conservative, I don’t see how you can be comfortable with the execution of this plan.
Smith & Wesson, Attys. at Law
Every politician that lost their jobs because they voted for this $700 Billion dollar bailout turkey deserved it.
Saxby Chambliss calling for a Money Bomb.
http://sarah-palin-2008.blogspot.com/2008/11/going-down-for-thethird-count.html
What about the Constitution allows such beasts as a “nonappropriated fund instrumentality”? Aye, the same as allows Paulsen’s bailout. The “whatever we can do we will do” clause.
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/usc_sec_07_00002279—b000-.html
On November 14th, 2008 at 10:01 pm, conservative in europe said: at 138
Bush has a strategy…? That neo-con (aka liberal jerk) can only make stupid decisions and screw our country.
Blame? Blame those who voted for it. The only people who shouldn’t be blamed is those who voted against it. We can throw blame in all directions, heck blame John Adams, yea he really put us into this mess. Corruption, and the loss of Checks and Balances caused this. Free Market only works in the same place as zero point energy, in dreams.
brad_sk,
Why.. Point out some specific incidents – not Iraq or Guantanamo.. I mean real incidents where Bush did things that “screw our country”.. The one thing he wanted that would have screwed our country, the Amnesty, failed.. and not because of liberals.
I’m not a big fan of Mr. Bush – mostly because of his immigration policy. However, the left blames him for everything from Guantanimo to hippies getting the crabs. No one can point to any one thing that he has done that is so bad. Every example that is given seems to have originated in the Clinton administration. Even Guantanimo.. it’s precident for being a detention camp was made by the Clinton administration when it was used as a holding facility for Hatian refugees. Never heard a word for you liberals back then. hmmmmmmm…
Why not..You left out Iraq because its a super screw up and not not just a screw up? How about negligence on Afghanistan/ Pakistan (in turn because of war based on lies in Iraq)? Afghanistan/Pakistan area is agian becoming hot bed for terrorists because of this.
How bout the huge increase in government spending? Heard of Reagan’s fiscal conservatism? You know our federal deficit is 10 trillion now. How about $700B bailout to take “ownership” of private companies spearheaded by White House.
BTW I never said Clinton was good…Just because Clinton was a liberal doesnt make Bush a conservative. He is hardly a conservative when compared to Reagan.
Just traded in my ‘06 for an ‘09 car, yesterday. I’m a bit confused. Which agency do I go to, in order to get my bailout? Oh, never mind. I have to go to D.C., anyway, December. I’ll stop in and visit my congressman. He’ll know.
Brad_sk,
I will agree 100% that he is not the conservative Reagan was. But – to include Iraq or Afghanistan, as a whole, is unfair. The fact is that in 2002, the VAST majority of Americans wanted to see Arab blood. Bush’s real mistake in those wars has been the way he prosecuted them. When we choose to fight a war, we only win when we give it 100% without worrying about what anyone else thinks. As soon as this administration started to limit the way our Soldiers fought, the current situation was ensured. Under those conditions, I will grant you that. If we had simply gone in, produced a result and walked away, both would be a success. Instead, Bush gave the MSM and the Dems the “quagmire” they have been so hoping for since the fall of Saigon took away their only true ability to pontificate.
Under those terms, I agree. Otherwise, the actual wars themselves were politically necessary both for domestic and foreign politics.
Clinton was only a liberal when the wind shifted that way. In ‘94, when he realized that the ultra left wouldn’t win him reelection in ‘96, he fell just to the right of center for the rest of his terms. Bush’s election in 2000 was about not voting for a continuation of the wishy wash, blow with the wind style of politics Clinton and Gore represented. His reelection in 2004 was due to the war. He hasn’t been stellar, to be sure. However, he hasn’t been the total nightmare the libs make him out to be. The real fact is that the liberals, along with the Bush Administration’s cowtowing to them, are the ones that have put us in this situation.
Strong leadership and stronger stomachs are the only true cure to what ails us now.
One last thing and then I leave it – the deficit we have is due to a war being fought. Like it or not.
A single air strike costs more than the Ken Starr investigation did.
10 Trillion vs. continued terrorist attacks = money well spent.
700 billion that is actually going to be 2 trillion after the Dems in Congress and the new administration get done with it in order to prop up failing companies = horse poop.
I hope we can at least agree on the horse poop.
Ah, conservative math. Is there anything less logical? That’s an astronomical amount of money to spend on something that only might happen, yet that’s somehow completely justified versus spending a comparably small amount to help our flagging economy. I’m no fan of this bail-out stuff by any means, but at least the money is going to Americans. Why is that such a preposterous idea? Especially compared to spending as much money as we have on building, bombing, re-building, and re-bombing Iraq for no reason or apparent benefit.
It just… it just doesn’t make sense. If this is the sort of rationality displayed in your politics, I mean I wouldn’t trust you with a grocery budget in real life. You’d come back home with a bunch of lottery tickets, and we’d starve.
How did we pay for the war?
We burned and pillaged their lands, stole their virgins and then relocated everyone to reservations. Them we built solar arrays, windmill farms and casinos and we all became very rich.
Digshot,
You wouldn’t starve. The State will take care of your every need.
The bailout money is not going TO Americans as you seem to think. The money is being taken FROM Americans. That is why we (Americans that is) are so upset.
You see, unlike liberals, conservatives tend to think of America as a good place. We do not like to see our excellent way of life subverted. We also do not like the idea of living in fear. Therefore, when our country is attacked, we tend to not mind spending the money on defending it. Liberals, on the other hand, seem to do nothing but whine about how awful America is and, when we are attacked, line up to wonder what we did to upset the attacker.
Yep, good ole conservative logic.. You may not trust me to buy groceries. That’s fine. Problem is, I don’t trust you or those who think like you to run the USA. I also wouldn’t trust you with my kids, or my pets, or my shoes..
I will give you credit for not resorting to name calling.. but you did insinuate that I was too stupid to buy groceries so my theory that liberals can never win an argument based on facts without resorting to name calling still stands. Thanks.
Sorry, will let brad_sk respond but Bush/president/commander-in-chief’s response to the 3000 Americans massacared on 9/11: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010917-11.html
Do the math (And we have not even discussed Compean and Ramos)… or this: http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=45f1Riv_z1I.
As anyone who has studied political philosophy and history understands that socialism cannot coexist with individual freedoms and a society that believes in liberty. At one point, socialists must choose between their goals and that freedom and liberty that has existed at the point. Voters in this country have apparently decided that socialism is better.
Are you serious? What does this explanation have to do with the use of the word toxic???
Any asset “may end up being worth much less than their book value.” Therefore you need to try to justify the use of the term toxic in this situation.
Weary Citizen, you should probably reread my comment. You obviously didn’t understand it. Again, please justify using the term toxic to describe subject assets.
Not true. Devaluation of a currency is not infrequent. Paulson is not devaluing the dollar.
I challenge you people to justify your comments given the amount of capital which has POURED into treasuries over the past few months.
Look, don’t comment if you don’t read the news. He successfully kick-started the flow of certain types of credit without spending a dime on it.
Stay classy, seveneleventy.
Let me throw this question out there. Do any of you work on Wall Street?
This is the mistake in your logic..if so much money is really spent on fighting terrorists, I would support it completely…But no…Money spent in Iraq is way more than that spent in original and still terrorists hot beds of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Cheney and Rumsfield did not go on Iraq war claiming to fight terrorists…There was no evidence then of any such activity there…They went to war based on WMD claim which we now know is a lie. You should really check out Ron Paul’s arguments and his views on this and other policies by Bush…Ron Paul gives a true conservative view point.
I think you’ll be able to support it again soon. As ops in Iraq taper off, ops in Afghanistan will probably ramp up.
A lie, or a global intelligence failure? Also, the war was indirectly against terrorists that used the Clinton years of Iraq containment operations to justify their organization. Do you deny this?