By Robert Pore
robert.pore@theindependent.com

With the White House ready to ask Congress to borrow another $1.025 billion to fund American involvement in Iraq, Nelson said it's time for Iraq to begin paying its own way.

In the last five years, Congress has had to borrow more than $500 billion for security and reconstruction in Iraq. Of that total, $45 billion has been dedicated for reconstruction, Nelson said.

Last year, the administration sought an additional $2.9 billion for Iraq reconstruction, which was not acted on by Congress. He said the next supplemental will include a request for reconstruction funds.

Nelson, speaking with state reporters during a teleconference Wednesday, said the U.S. surge policy has worked in keeping the level of civil strife down in Iraq, "but the Iraqi government has not made sufficient progress on achieving national reconciliation."

"The Iraqi leaders have yet to show the true leadership necessary to move their nation forward," Nelson said.

Nelson, an advocate of benchmarks to track Iraqi progress on a number of pre-determined goals, said it has helped lawmakers track Iraq's progress or lack of progress on achieving those benchmarks.

"Overall, the Iraqi government is not living up to its responsibilities for security matters, reconstruction and political reconciliation," Nelson said.

He said the time has come to end Iraq's dependence on U.S. war funding and, "...end the era of blank checks for Iraq."

"The American people have grown weary of financing every aspect of Iraq's resurgence," Nelson said.

He said the Iraqi government is expected to have surpluses on government revenues to the tune of $60 billion, mainly as a result of skyrocketing oil prices.

Iraq has the world's second-largest known reserve of oil.

"Those skyrocketing oil prices are being felt at the pumps by Americans," Nelson said. "Here at home, we have a spiraling deficit, crumbling infrastructure and shortfalls in funding for national defense."

Nelson said it's estimated that there's $25 billion of Iraqi money currently being held in American banks.

"While they have a surplus, we are looking at a deficit and we continue to borrow from our children and grandchildren's future from countries like China with our borrowings," he said.

Nelson said he is working with his colleagues to craft a proposal stipulating all future reconstruction funds be provided to Iraq in the form of a loan.

"It's time for the Iraqis to begin to invest in their own future," he said.

He said his amendment to the 2003 supplemental spending bill would have required that half the reconstruction funding in the bill be provided as a loan unless other nations holding Iraqi debt agreed to forgive 90 percent of Iraq's pre-war obligations.

While the amendment passed in the Senate, he said it was removed from the final bill in conference negotiations at White House insistence.