About That Iraq 'Surplus'

Wall Street Journal
Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Among the antiwar faithful, every improvement in Iraq is still bad news, even if -- or especially if -- it's good news for the U.S. So it is with the political eruption over Iraq's budget surplus.

According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the Iraqi government generated some $96 billion in revenues since 2005, when Baghdad started managing its own budget, with about 94% coming from crude oil exports. Now Democrats and a few Republicans are complaining that Iraq is "pocketing huge profits" without spending enough on reconstruction. The GAO figures the surplus could run as high as $50 billion this year, though the real figure will be far lower once parliament resolves ongoing budget negotiations.

Of course it is one more sign of progress that Iraq is immersed in ordinary budget disputes like every other democracy, and no one argues that these funds won't be spent in the future. The real news is that Iraq was unable to spend the money it budgeted during the war's darkest periods, largely due to violence, sectarian strife and corruption. Since General David Petraeus's surge, security has improved sufficiently for Iraq to finance its own development.

Before the war, Iraq's oil revenues, derived from the world's third largest reserves, were being laundered through the Oil for Food program to sponsor Saddam Hussein's murderous regime and buy political patrons in the West. Now they'll pay for a better life for Iraqi citizens. If this is the worst news the antiwar movement can highlight, victory must be at hand.