My President Invaded Iraq and I Didn't Even Get Any Oil to Show for It

From the Associated Press:

With the global economy carrying the weight of $70-a-barrel oil, dismay among many economists is focusing on Iraq, whose exports have slipped to their lowest levels since the 2003 invasion.

Iraq, a founding member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, sits atop the world’s third-highest proven reserves. The estimated 115 billion barrels under Iraqi soil is more than any known reserve of any other OPEC member except Saudi Arabia and Iran.

But contrary to optimistic prewar expectations, Iraq’s oil production has slipped since the U.S.-led invasion, to an average of 2 million barrels a day. Iraq has never regained even the reduced production levels that prevailed in the 1990s, when Iraq lived under U.N. sanctions.

Cross-posted at Liberty & Power.