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The Intercept reports:
The total U.S. budgetary cost of war since 2001 is $4.79 trillion, according to a report [PDF] [...] from Brown University's Watson Institute. That's the highest estimate yet.
Neta Crawford of Boston University, the author of the report, included interest on borrowing, future veterans needs, and the cost of homeland security in her calculations.
The amount of $4.79 trillion, "so large as to be almost incomprehensible", she writes, adds up like this:
- The wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, and other overseas operations already cost $1.7 trillion between 2001 and August 2016 with $103 billion more requested for 2017
- Homeland Security terrorism prevention costs from 2001 to 2016 were $548 billion.
- The estimated DOD base budget was $733 billion and veterans spending was $213 billion.
- Interest incurred on borrowing for wars was $453 billion.
- Estimated future costs for veterans' medical needs until the year 2053 is $1 trillion.
- And the amounts the DOD, State Department, and Homeland Security have requested for 2017 ($103 billion).
Crawford carried out a similar study[PDF] in June 2014 that estimated the cost of war at $4.4 trillion.
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Total Cost of USA's Wars Since 2001 Approaches $5 Trillion
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Don't steal... the IRS hates competition!
(Score: 4, Insightful) by pTamok on Tuesday October 25 2016, @12:28PM
The USA obtained its independence, in part, due to the aid of France.
Quoting from the Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France_in_the_American_Revolutionary_War [wikipedia.org]
Because the French involvement in the war was distant and naval in nature, over a billion livres tournois were spent by the French government to support the war effort. That sum was double the normal annual income of the French government, making the finances of the French state in disastrous shape. The heavy cost of servicing the debt, given the highly inefficient financial system, caused political instability in France. That instability was one of the immediate causes of the French Revolution of 1789.
In all the French spent 1.3 billion livres to support the Americans directly, in addition to the money it spent fighting Britain on land and sea outside the U.S.[15]
France's status as a great modern power was affirmed by the war, but it was detrimental to the country's finances. Even though France's European territories were not affected, victory in a war against Great Britain with battles like the decisive siege of Yorktown in 1781 had a large financial cost which severely degraded fragile finances and increased the national debt.[16] France gained little except that it weakened its main strategic enemy and gained a new, fast-growing ally that could become a welcome trading partner. However, the trade never materialized, and in 1793 the United States proclaimed its neutrality in the war between Great Britain and the French Republic.
One can draw parallels between France as a great power taking on disastrous debt servicing foreign wars, and the current behaviour of the USA.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 26 2016, @04:28AM
That war tumbled on and on for a long time too. The americans were getting beat in 1812. But the English had to withdraw and basically settled with what is now canada. Why did they withdraw? Because the french were back at it and they had to concentrate on Napoleon. Napoleon had to find a quick infusion of cash. Which he got from the Americans and the Louisiana purchase.
It wasn't until basically WWI that everyone started to get along to fight the germans. Even the civil war England and France took sides.