Tony Blair Ignored Iraq Warning, Top General Says

Staff / Truthdig Dec 8, 2009 Add Maj. Gen. Tim Cross to that growing list of people who foresaw disaster in Iraq but were ignored. The senior British liaison to the U.S. reconstruction effort warned his prime minister before the invasion that insufficient postwar planning would lead to chaos. The rest is history. (continued) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Attorney General: On Race, America Is ‘a Nation of Cowards’

Staff / Truthdig Feb 19, 2009 Speaking at a Justice Department event in honor of Black History Month, the first black attorney general, appointed by the first black president, acknowledged that America has made progress but warned that "in things racial we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards." His full remarks, after the jump. Dig deeper ( 9 Min. Read )

Iraq Watchdog Looks Back on Years of Reconstruction Waste

Staff / Truthdig Feb 3, 2009 He's back: Stuart Bowen, the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, has released a new volume in his series of blood-boiling reports Looking back on his five years as a watchdog, Bowen laments the widespread waste of taxpayer funds in Iraq, and warns that the same mistakes are being made in Afghanistan. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Blagojevich vs. the Senate

Stanley Kutler / Truthdig Jan 5, 2009 Some have argued that the Senate does not have the right to reject embattled Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's pick to replace Barack Obama. However, history clearly disagrees. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Report Reveals Major Problems With Iraq Reconstruction

Staff / Truthdig Dec 14, 2008 Remember when we were told that the Iraq invasion would be a quick and straightforward venture, and that the resulting reconstruction effort would pay for itself? Those notions, like so many others that held sway in recent years, have been belied by the actual outcomes, as evidenced by a new report about the highly problematic rebuilding process in Iraq. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Baghdad Behind Walls

Anna Badkhen / Truthdig Aug 14, 2008 Walls have become ubiquitous in Baghdad, a place where barricades keep militias from one another and hungry shoppers from the nearest kebab. As Iraqis struggle with sovereignty, the barriers are a constant reminder of the American military occupation. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Iraq’s $79-Billion Windfall

Staff / Truthdig Aug 6, 2008 A congressional report has found that the Iraqi government will soon have a $79-billion surplus, thanks to the record price of oil. It's a figure that will surely raise eyebrows as the U.S. shells out an additional $48 billion for reconstruction, but the situation, like all things involving billions and bombs, is a lot more complicated. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

U.N. Head Surveys Burma Damage

Staff / Truthdig May 23, 2008 After putting pressure on Burma's ruling military junta, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has traveled to Burma, where he is taking stock of the devastation left by Cyclone Nargis on May 2. Ban also met with Prime Minister Thein Sein, who told him that the storm-ravaged country is out of the relief phase and into reconstruction. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Trading Spaces, Iraq Edition

Anna Badkhen / Truthdig May 15, 2008 Sectarian violence has driven millions of Iraqis from their homes. Now that the violence has abated in one formerly upscale Baghdad neighborhood, residents are returning to find squatters who refuse to leave and a government and occupying army unwilling to kick them out. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Rubber-Stamping ‘Failed’ Iraq Projects

Staff / Truthdig Apr 28, 2008 The special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction has found a disturbing trend among Iraq rebuilding projects. Far too often, when work is incomplete, U.S. officials will revise or "descope" the terms of the contract to list the project as completed. One example: A $35-million children's hospital in Basra that is marked completed despite the fact that it's only 35 percent up and running. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

From the Bayou to Baghdad: Mission Accomplished?

Amy Goodman / Truthdig Sep 5, 2007 The host of "Democracy Now!" reports from New Orleans, where residents are fighting to keep their homes and resist the unholy alliance of opportunistic developers and an unresponsive government. Meanwhile, the president seems just as oblivious to the suffering of people in Louisiana as he is to that of Iraqis. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Iraq Reconstruction Breaks Down

Staff / Truthdig Apr 30, 2007 Seventy-five percent of projects surveyed in the latest report by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction were no longer functioning properly. Investigators said facilities began breaking down after only six months and that roughly $5 billion is lost every year to fraud. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )