Iraq Found with $80 Billion Oil Surplus as U.S. Pours Money Into Reconstruction

As Congress contemplates cutting more programs and the deficit sours due to the costs of the Iraq and Afghanistan war, a U.S. audit has found that the Iraqi government is sitting on an estimated four-year $80 billion oil surplus.

This surplus between 2005 and 2007 was $29 billion as U.S. funds poured into the country and the surplus in 2008 is expected to be as much as $50 billion.

The U.S. has put in $48 billion into reconstruction while Iraq spent $3.9 between 2005 to 2008.

Previously, Iraqi officials expressed outraged at the suggestion that they would have to pay for reconstruction costs, click here.

I have a friend whose son is going to a public school outside Washington that cannot afford to hire a science teacher. He mentioned this fact to me after returning from Iraq as a journalist and watching millions evaporate in waste and corruption. Some schools are actually considering moving to four-day weeks due to fuel costs. At the same time, we are sending taxpayer dollars to a country with an $80 billion oil surplus while our own deficit rises and economy collapses. This goes to show that just being a superpower does not mean that you are particularly smart.

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