Iraq to cost U.S. more than $2 trillion

Iraq to cost U.S. more than $2 trillion, says report

More pressure on the Bush administration over its handling of the war Washington: The real cost to America of the Iraq war is likely to be between $1 trillion and $2 trillion, up to 10 times more than previously thought, according to a report written by a Nobel prize-winning economist and a Harvard budget expert.

The study, which expands on traditional estimates by including such costs as lifetime disability and healthcare for troops injured in the conflict as well as the impact on the American economy, concludes that the U.S. Government is continuing to grossly underestimate the cost of the war.

The paper on the real cost of the war, written by Joseph Stiglitz, Columbia University professor who won the Nobel Prize for economics in 2001, and Linda Bilmes, a Harvard budget expert, is likely to add to the pressure on the Bush administration over its handling of the war.

It also follows the revelation this week that the White House has scaled back its ambitions to rebuild Iraq and does not intend to seek new funds for reconstruction.

Read on. . . .