Donald Trump said Iraq oil can make the US "a fortune," in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
Iraq, currently occupied by US forces, has $15 trillion in oil reserves, second behind only Saudi Arabia, said Trump.
If the US were to get its hands on some of that oil, it could make money and pay back its allies like the UK for their involvement in the Iraqi invasion and occupation, he said.
Trump mentioned that the US financial cost of invading and occupying Iraq totals $1.5 trillion.
To justify taking Iraqi oil, Trump said if the US were to simply leave Iraq, Iran will invade and take over the country. Letting the oil fall to Iran would be a bad idea, according to Trump.
If the US takes control of Iraqi oil, Trump said he would give some of the oil revenues to Iraq and some of it to the US and its allies.
On Libya, Trump said the US has already spent billions of dollars on the civil war there. However, the US isn’t likely to see a drop of oil from the efforts.
Below are other positions of Trump, stated in previous interviews:
Foreign Policy
- China: Threaten them with a 25 percent import tariff if they refuse to appreciate the yuan faster. The mere threat of a tariff would induce the China to revalue the yuan.
- OPEC: The US economy can’t handle oil prices at $100 per barrel. Make OPEC lower their prices. When pressed for specifics, he didn’t give any details except that if the message is delivered the right way (by him), OPEC would listen. He also said the US protects Saudi Arabia with their soldiers, but the latter doesn’t pay anything for that protection.
- Pakistan: They know where Osama Bin Laden is. Cut off all financial aid to Pakistan until they hand him over.
Wall Street
-No additional regulations. Otherwise, Wall Street wouldn’t be able to compete with London, Zurich, and Hong Kong.
Defense Spending
-Trump implied he’ll increase defense spending, build better weapons, and have better intelligence so that the US military can achieve its goals with fewer human casualties.
Immigration
- The US border with Mexico is a joke. It should be militarized so that no illegal immigrants can come in. Moreover, doing so would stop the burgeoning US-Mexico trade in illegal drugs.
- For illegal aliens already in the US, decide on a case-by-case basis who can stay and who should be deported or jailed. It’s a lengthy process, but Trumps believes this is the best option.
Social Issues
- Pro-life and anti-gay marriage. However, America has bigger problems than these two issues, which shouldn’t be the focus of presidential elections.
Taxes
-Simplify the tax code and make it fairer. When pressed for specifics, Trump didn’t give any details.
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