A huge percentage of this is the pay of the military who would be getting it even if they were still in the states preparing for action. That is simply forgotten by the anti-war left DMB and politicians.
That was just an off the top of my head number. I was trying to make a differnt point. See post #23 for actual costs.
I wish someone would breakout the incremental costs of going to war in Iraq as compared to the cost of having a standing military at home (or stationed throughout the world). I would think that at least half would be fixed costs.