President Bush has signed into law the FY2009 Defense Authorization Act which includes a bipartisan provision authored by U.S. Senator Susan Collins along with Ben Nelson (D-NE), and Evan Bayh (D-IN) that would transfer to the Iraqis the responsibility to pay for major reconstruction projects, the salaries, training and equipment for their own troops, and other expenses. The provision represents a major bipartisan shift in Iraqi policy.
Specifically, the provision prohibits American tax dollars from being spent on major reconstruction projects in Iraq. It also requires that that Iraqis assume the responsibility of paying for the salaries, training and equipping of Iraqi security forces and of the Sons of Iraq; and it initiates negotiations between our government and Iraq on a plan to cover other expenses such as fuel used by American forces in Iraq.
Senator Collins said “There is no reason why the Iraqis cannot bear more of the cost of securing, stabilizing and rebuilding their country. No more American funds should be spent for major reconstruction projects. The costs of the salaries for the Sons of Iraq, for the training and equipping of the Iraqi security forces, and for other costs such as the fuel we use in Iraq should be borne by the Iraqis. It is really difficult for Americans who are struggling with the high cost of energy and the economic crisis to pay these costs in a county that has the second-largest oil reserves and a burgeoning budget surplus.”