What Could We Have Purchased Instead of the Iraq War?
Jul 15, 2013
Latest Update
For the cost of the Iraq War, now at $2.19 trillion, we could have paid off America’s college debt, repaired every needy highway and bridge in America, funded 9 years of cancer research, and repaid every dollar of federal disaster relief, including Hurricanes Sandy and Katrina. With $275 billion left over.
Here are the numbers:
Iraq War Cost Total So Far = $2.19 Trillion
Total U.S. College Loan Debt = $1 Trillion
Cancer Research (2004-2013) = $84.7 Billion
Highway/Bridge Construction Backlog = $648.2 Billion
Total U.S. Disaster Relief (2003-2012) = $182.2 Billion
Total: $1.915 Trillion
Difference: $275 billion
Sources:
Watson Institute at Brown University
U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
National Cancer Institute
Federal Highway Administration
Congressional Research Service