Where to start cutting

Balancing the budget and cutting spending are the goals of the new Tea Party inspired Republican party.

If the Republicans are serious about cutting the budget, they should start by ending the tragedies playing out in Iraq and Afghanistan. Last summer marked $1 trillion dollars flushed away in Iraq-not counting the hundreds of billions spent on the pentagon budget.

In Afghanistan, like Iraq, billions of dollars cannot be accounted for. Nor can the human costs. This year saw headlines like:

WikiLeaks cables on Afghanistan show monumental corruption

Iran Is Said to Give Top Karzai Aide Cash by the Bagful

The true cost of the Iraq war: $3 trillion and beyond

Obligated Over $17.7 Billion to About 7,000 Contractors and Other Entities for Afghanistan Reconstruction During Fiscal Years 2007 - 2009”

Iraq war winds down, but costs soar

New Fraud Cases Point to Lapses in Iraq Projects

US embassy cables: Money smuggling out of Afghanistan

U.S. Has Been In Afghanistan As Long As Soviet Russia