War Against Iraq Has a Damaging Price Tag

As our nation stands on the verge of a war with Iraq, one wonders whether the Bush Administration is considering the economic damage his foreign policy agenda will impose on our communities here in the United States. Increasingly, there is a sense among Americans that the belligerent and unilateral course plotted by the Bush administration is not only costly, but will ultimately fail in its goal of establishing a democracy in Iraq, and further erode a fragile U.S. economy. While the U.S. economy struggles to recover, African-Americans are experiencing one of the biggest slides into poverty in two decades. Since January 2001, the African-American jobless rate has soared back to double-digit pre-Clinton rates. Meanwhile, a recent report from the U.S. Census Bureau states that 1.3 million more Americans have slipped into officially defined poverty, taking the poverty rate to 11.7 percent. This is an indication that the state of the U.S. economy - above and beyond the stock market - is in dire need of attention.

Instead, the Bush Administration continues with war plans that will siphon off funds from a U.S. economy already running a river of debt. The estimated U.S. budget deficit for FY 2003 is $250 billion. According to a report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) the cost of an Iraq invasion and occupation will be at least $200 billion. The CBO estimates the added war debt will amount to $1.7 trillion in 10 years. The report further states that to help pay for a war with Iraq, the Social Security Trust Fund will be raided every year until 2010, totaling at least $1.5 trillion. While Enron-like scandals are robbing pension funds, this war aims to rob those who depend on Social Security the most - the elderly.

How can we afford a foreign policy agenda that takes money away from domestic resources that are a lifeline to our communities? Americans are in dire need such things as affordable prescription drugs, a Social Security safety net, college loans, Medicaid and Medicare, election reform funded, sufficient affordable housing and strategic support for the budgets of those states whose economies have gone into the tank. We know all too well here in California that our legislature faces the daunting task of balancing a $35 billion-dollar budget shortfall. But it appears that a war economy is now embargoing funds for domestic human needs far into the future.

In an atmosphere where we may feel that our integrity and patriotism might be called into question at the slightest divergence from the mainstream, African Americans, like the rest of the population, are very concerned about terrorism and our national security. However, we are still not convinced by the Bush Administration's push for a war with Iraq. According to the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies' 2002 National Opinion Poll, most African Americans don't rate it as one of the more pressing issues facing the country. The findings show that only 6 percent of us see the war as a key concern and only 19.2 percent of us support it.

Whether you agree with the stance of the Bush Administration or not, history has proven there is no guarantee democracy can be imposed through military force, even if force is used successfully to oust anti-democratic dictators. Invading Iraq, and implementing huge increases in military spending will not make Americans safer, but will instead will do lasting harm to our communities and severely inhibit all prospects for an economic recovery. We should be outraged to know that funds needed for critical domestic priorities will be spent on a questionable war with a so-called "enemy" who does not even threaten the basic security of the United States.

America deserves a domestic policy based on serving our nation's immediate needs and a foreign policy that does not take vital resources away from our communities - policies that will provide long lasting security for us all.

We welcome for feedback and comments. Please email Wilbur at PoliticalInsider@Blackweekly.com

About Wilbur Babb, Jr. M.P.A.

Wilbur currently presides over Local Government Affairs for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). In this stimulating new column, Wilbur reports on government, politics, and topics of concern to our communities, as well as adding insights and analysis from an "insider's perspective". Wilbur has a unique way of making politics exciting, while explaining current events in relationship to political history. A former special assistant to former Assembly Speaker Willie L. Brown Jr., Wilbur's career has had increasing responsibility serving as legislative assistant, consultant, and mapping strategist for various politicians, organizations, and political campaigns. On a grassroots level, he has demonstrated a genuine commitment to equal voting access by managing voter registration campaigns targeting high school seniors. He has also developed a mentor program for young African-American boys in grade school, all while serving on various boards and commissions of the UCLA Alumni Association.

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