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The administration took a swat at France, Germany, and Russia today by barring them from bidding on $18.6 billion in Iraqi reconstruction contracts. I guess I should just be grateful the contracts were not automatically awarded to Haliburton. Nonetheless, while I think the wrist slap is amusing and certainly appropriate, I’m also wondering why anyone outside the U.S. gets to bid. After all, this is $18.6 billion of OUR tax dollars. It’s bad enough we are paying to rebuild the place. Why should we pump that money into yet another country as oppossed to our own economy? What’s wrong with reinvesting it here?