Bush, Tax Cuts, and the Iraq War

E.J. Dionne argues in this column ( http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/14/AR2006121401364.html ) that the Iraqi War has never been Bush's top priority, preserving and extending his tax cuts has always been his first priority. He calculates that for every dollar this Administration has spent on the war, it has cut taxes by two dollars. Obviously this can't continue, and the deficits we are experiencing is the natural result of such a policy.

Democrats should demand that if Bush wants to increase troops in Iraq, and wants billions of dollars for Iraq's unemployed, then he should propose raising taxes to pay for expanding the war effort. It would be fascinating to see Republicans try and explain why we should spend billions of dollars more in Iraq, but not raise taxes to pay for such expenditures.