Is this controversial?
4,486 dead U.S. soldiers and $1,700,000,000,000 tax dollars for what, exactly?
Exactly. The problem is the NeoCons wanted to destroy Iraq & Syria, and have largely succeeded, and now we are paying an immense prices (Trillions of dollars, thousands of dead servicemen, many maimed physically and/or mentally, more terrorism, millions of refugees, etc.).
The virtual extermination of the terrorist network that organized and executed the 09-11 attacks on the USA is what was gained.
The Iraq mission was not the mistake. The mistake was the 2010 decision by Obama to withdraw everyone so he could campaign in 2012 as “ending the Iraq war”. That allowed Al-qeda to morp into ISIS. NOW we are having to go BACK Iraq (with the addition of Syria) a third time to exterminate the terroirsts that should of been killed in 2011-2012 when we had them on the ropes.