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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

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To: MKTBUZZ who started this subject	3/13/2003 3:55:24 PM
From: Kenneth E. Phillipps	Read Replies (3) of 769670

Bush conceals war cost estimate - Dems demand it Democrats demand war cost estimates from Bush Tue March 11, 2003 05:31 PM ET WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle on Tuesday said Senate Democrats will oppose raising the government's borrowing limit and will not act on proposed tax cuts until the Bush administration provides cost estimates for war with Iraq and its reconstruction. With war looming and the government bumping against its debt ceiling, Daschle said Democrats will insist that Congress get estimates on the cost of a potential conflict and its aftermath, which he claimed could reach hundreds of billions of dollars. "How in the world can we agree to a budget if we're going to be off by hundreds of billions of dollars because of the war?" Daschle of South Dakota told reporters. The White House has refused to provide estimates, arguing that it cannot offer realistic figures because they hinge on how the war plays out and how much help other nations give to rebuild Iraq. But Daschle said it was "irresponsible and extremely unwarranted" for the White House to withhold estimates. Republicans who control both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate intend to start moving their fiscal 2004 federal budget plans through budget committees this week. The proposals are expected to call for $726 billion in new tax cuts sought by President George W. Bush. Daschle said he was sending a letter to Bush requesting war cost estimates "without any further delay." He said Democrats on the Senate Budget Committee will push to put off action on the budget until they get that information. The Treasury Department has been tapping a federal workers retirement fund and taking other measures to keep from breaching the current limit on government debt. Republicans have been reluctant to hold the politically sensitive vote to raise the debt ceiling and likely will consider it as part of Congress' budget resolution. Daschle said the White House has war cost estimates but was concealing them to try to disguise the government's dramatically deteriorating financial condition. "It seems to me that it is entirely appropriate for Congress to be given at least the same information as some of these contractors have been given," he said, referring to reports that the administration has met with a few major U.S. contractors, including Halliburton Co. HAL.N and Bechtel Group Inc., to discuss a potential contract for rebuilding Iraqi infrastructure worth up to $900 million.

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