1115.org

With the recent fireworks surrounding Scooter Libby’s indictment, many are hoping that it will lead to the public taking a closer look at the false and exaggerated evidence used in America’s run up to war—not just the yellowcake uranium that set this whole Plame/Libby circus in motion, but the WMDs that were never found, the al-Qaeda relationships that didn’t exist, the weapons inspectors who were ignored, and the administration’s desire to start dropping bombs no matter how flimsy their justifications were. While we (along with almost every other left-leaning site out there) have been beating this particular drum for years, having these questions asked by the formerly compliant mainstream media and the public at large is a whole different story, and it must scare the hell out of those who once were able to deflect criticism simply by saying “9/11″ over and over again.

In this kind of charged atmosphere, the newly-released report by Stuart Bowen, the special inspector-general for Iraq reconstruction, will certainly add to the administration’s Iraq headache. Bowen’s findings aren’t exactly surprising considering the levels of corruption and disorganization already seen in post-Saddam Iraq, but it’s hard not to get angry when reading them:

The US government had “no comprehensive policy or regulatory guidelines” in place for staffing the management of postwar Iraq, according to the top government watchdog overseeing the country’s reconstruction.

(…)

His 110-page quarterly report, delivered to Congress at the weekend, has underscored how a “reconstruction gap” is emerging that threatens to leave many projects planned by the US on the drawing board.

“Nearly two years ago, the US developed a reconstruction plan that specified a target number of projects that would be executed using the Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund.

“That number was revised downward [last year]. Now it appears that the actual number of projects completed will be even lower,” Mr Bowen says in his report.

C’mon, someone please raise your hand and talk about the schools that are being built.

Bowen’s report shows that more than a quarter of the $30 billion appropriated for Iraq’s reconstruction has gone to security costs, as the initial United States strategy—blowing things up and expecting everything to be ok afterwards—never planned for the kind of large-scale insurgency that we are now facing in Iraq. This lack of planning can also be directly linked to the other losses we have faced since Junior decided to finish up what his daddy (wisely) chose not to: over 2,000 American soldiers dead. Tens of thousands more injured. The loss of American prestige overseas. And $300 billion down the drain.

And for all of this, we get to read about how billions of dollars just disappear from the reconstruction fund, and how firms like Halliburton have overcharged the army by millions. What we don’t read about is anyone being held accountable; Paul Bremer got a medal for his lax oversight, and Halliburton continues to receive huge no-bid contracts. Meanwhile, Iraq continues to consume both our finances and the lives of our soldiers at a ferocious rate.

While the importance of the Valerie Plame/Scooter Libby situation is certainly not to be minimized, it is but one element in the tapestry of arrogance, corruption, and lack of foresight that is the Iraq war. We can only hope that the media will shine its spotlight wide enough to bring the rest of these stories out of the shadows.