This is what $25 billion has gotten the US in Iraq.

Menendez does well to ask why the US are doing Maliki's fighting for them, once he launched an attack without consulting them. He then asks what has been achieved for the $25 billion that the US has spent on Iraqi reconstruction.

Here are Menendez's figures:

• 43% of population lives in absolute poverty
• prior to war 19% of children suffered malnutrition; today 28%
• last year 75% elementary-aged kids went to school; now 30%
• prior to war 50% lacked access to clean water; now 70%
• only 50 of 142 primary health care centres are open to public

As Menendez says, how can the US continue to spend this kind of cash for these kind of results?

As he also says, the administration continues to refuse to define success but rather claims it will know it when it sees it and, until then, it would like a blank cheque book.

Tags: general petraeus, senator Bob Menendez, mccain, clinton, surge, hearing, iraq war, criminal, crime, iran, terror