Washington, D.C. – Members of the fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition have sent a letter to Rep. Ike Skelton, Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, urging the inclusion of H.Res.97, “Providing for Operation Iraqi Freedom Cost Accountability,” in the Fiscal Year 2008 National Defense Authorization bill. The Blue Dog Co-Chairs applauded Chairman Skelton’s efforts for increased fiscal responsibility and emphasized the need for greater congressional oversight regarding the war in Iraq.

“It is the duty of this Congress to address the extreme lack of oversight and accountability in the funding of the war in Iraq,” said Rep. Mike Ross (AR-04), Blue Dog Co-Chair for Communications. “The American people deserve to know that their tax dollars are being spent wisely and that our troops have the resources they need to succeed. The Blue Dogs are committed to passing legislation that accomplishes this goal.”

“To date, the American taxpayer has spent more than $500 billion on military and reconstruction operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and there has been little to no accountability for how these funds were being spent,” said Congressman Allen Boyd (FL-02), Blue Dog Co-Chair for Administration. “Our brave troops, our military families, Congress, and the American people deserve to know where the money is going and that it is being spent in the most effective and efficient way. The Blue Dog resolution will bring much-needed accountability to our costs in Iraq, and for the Defense Authorization bill to be truly comprehensive and responsible, this resolution must be included.”

“During World War II, the Truman Commission was responsible for investigating waste and corruption in the American war effort and ended up saving American taxpayers billions of dollars,” said Rep. Dennis Moore (KS-03), Blue Dog Co-Chair for Policy. “Our efforts in Iraq deserve that same level of oversight and accountability, something we have been without for too long. Reinstituting the Truman Commission will ensure that taxpayer dollars are being spent efficiently and effectively in Iraq and that our service personnel have the resources they need.”

“Blue Dogs stand for fiscal responsibility, government transparency and common sense accountability – and that includes the way we spend taxpayer dollars on the war,” said Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (SD-At Large), Blue Dog Whip. “It is shameful that we have spent hundreds of billions of taxpayer funds on this war without a necessary level of oversight. As the dollars pile up, Americans from both parties are in agreement that we need to see results before continuing to write blank check after blank check.”

Early in the 110th Congress, the Blue Dogs endorsed and introduced H.Res.97 to address the lack of oversight and accountability with regard to how taxpayer dollars are spent on the war. The resolution focuses on four crucial points including calling for more transparency on how Iraq war funds are spent; creating a Truman Commission to investigate the awarding of contracts to look into reports of war profiteering; calling for future funding of the Iraq war to be done through the normal appropriations process and not through hiding the costs of the war in so-called “emergency” supplementals; and demanding greater responsibility of the Iraqis for their own security and internal policing operations.

Blue Dog Coalition members signing the letter include: Rep. Allen Boyd (FL-02), Co-Chair for Administration; Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (SD-AL), Whip; Rep. Dennis Moore (KS-03), Co-Chair for Policy; Rep. Mike Ross (AR-04), Co-Chair for Communications; Rep. Jane Harman (CA-36), Co-Chair, Blue Dog Policy Task Force for National and Homeland Security; Rep. Patrick Murphy, Co-Chair, Blue Dog Policy Task Force for National and Homeland Security; Rep. Michael Arcuri (NY-24); Rep. John Barrow (GA-12); Rep. Melissa Bean (IL-08); Rep. Marion Berry (AR-01); Rep. Sanford Bishop (GA-02); Rep. Dan Boren (OK-02); Rep. Leonard Boswell (IA-03); Rep. Dennis Cardoza (CA-18); Rep. Ben Chandler (KY-06); Rep. Jim Cooper (TN-05); Rep. Lincoln Davis (TN-04); Rep. Joe Donnelly (IN-02); Rep. Brad Ellsworth (IN-08); Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand (NY-20); Rep. Baron Hill (IN-09); Rep. Tim Holden (PA-17); Rep. Mike McIntyre (NC-07); Rep. Tim Mahoney (FL-16); Rep. Jim Matheson (UT-02); Rep. Charlie Melancon (LA-03); Rep. Mike Michaud (ME-02); Rep. Collin Peterson (MN-07); Rep. Earl Pomeroy (ND-AL); Rep. John Salazar (CO-03); Rep. Heath Shuler (NC-11); Rep. John Tanner (TN-08); Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-01); and Rep. Charlie Wilson (OH-06).

The fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition was formed in 1995 with the goal of representing the center of the House of Representatives and appealing to the mainstream values of the American public. The Blue Dogs are dedicated to a core set of beliefs that transcend partisan politics, including a deep commitment to the financial stability and national security of the United States. Currently there are 43 members of the Blue Dog Coalition. For more information, visit the Blue Dog website at http://www.house.gov/ross/BlueDogs/.