Bruce L. Braley: “this amendment is a simple, commonsense amendment that requires the President to submit a report to Congress on the…”

“this amendment is a simple, commonsense amendment that requires the President to submit a report to Congress on the long-term costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. On June 28 of this year, Chairman Murtha sent a Dear Colleague letter out talking about this very problem and the need to make sure that we are being given accurate information. We have now been engaged in the war in Afghanistan for almost 7 years and the war in Iraq for over 5 years, and the Bush administration has yet to submit a long-term estimate for the costs of the war. The administration has not submitted a cost estimate, despite a statutory reporting requirement for fiscal years 2006 through 2011 that was required in the fiscal year 2005 defense appropriation budget. As someone who took great interest in the Iraq Study Group report and the massive commitment to the future of Iraq in both blood and treasure, I looked forward to the publication of the Independent Review Group report that was issued in the wake of the Walter Reed Building 18 fiasco. One of the things that was recognized in that report was the fact that the Nation must recognize that there is a moral, human and budgetary cost of the war. When we engage in armed conflict, we must recognize those costs and be prepared to execute on those obligations.”