No Money For Armored Vehicles?

   This story from the Baltimore Sun says that the military does not have the money to have newer, stronger vehicles built for our Troops.

 

By David Wood
Sun reporter
Originally published January 10, 2007                                     Vehicles such as the Cougar and the M1117 Armored Security Vehicle have proven ability to save lives, but production started late and relatively small numbers are in use in Iraq, mostly because of money shortages, industry officials said.

    The Article

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    Let me get this part right. We have given that Idiot in Chief something like $250 billion for this war and our people cannot get the right equipment which they need desperately? Where in the hell is all of that money going to?                                                                                         

Cougar Armored Trucks and the M117 Armored security Vehicle  are in much needed demand in Iraq. We have less than 1,000 of these in use at this time. The cost per vehicle is $500,000 to $700,000.

   The military has stated that they need  4,060 of the MRAP vehicles, with 2,500 for the Army, 538 for the Navy and 1,022 for the Marines.                      Baltimore Sun for more

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   I would suggest reading the Sun article on why it is taking so long to get these vehicles made.

   The Bush Crime Family needs some accountability!

 

Details of Bush's New Iraq Strategy

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: January 10, 2007

Filed at 12:31 p.m. ET

Details of President Bush's new strategy for Iraq, as outlined by White House officials on Wednesday:

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U.S. TROOP INCREASE

-- Bush will commit 17,500 additional U.S. combat troops, the equivalent of five combat brigades, to Baghdad. The first brigade is to arrive Jan. 15; the next on Feb. 15; the remainder in separate waves every 30 days.

-- Bush will commit 4,000 more Marines, in two waves, to Anbar, the troubled western province that is a base of the mostly Sunni insurgency and foreign al-Qaida fighters.

-- The president's upcoming supplemental budget request will include $5.6 billion to pay for his new commitment of troops.

-- Expand embedding of U.S. advisers into Iraqi security forces.

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ECONOMIC AID

--$414 million to expand the Provincial Reconstruction Teams and set up new Provincial Support Teams.

--$400 in quick-response funds to address civilian problems.

--$350 million more for the Commander's Emergency Response Program, set up in 2003 to give field commanders money to solve local problems that quickly the improve daily the lives of Iraqis.

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IRAQI COMMITMENTS

--Allocate $10 billion to assist in reconstruction efforts.

--Deliver three brigades for Baghdad; the first on Feb. 1; then two more on Feb. 15.

--Crack down on insurgents regardless of sect or religion.

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   Note from the above that Bush is going to request an additional $5.6 billion to pay for the additional troops. So, if the Democrats decided not to give Bush the extra funds, then they do not deploy?