According to the National Priorities Project (NPP), $378 billion has already been spent or allocated for the Iraq war – despite the Bush administration’s promise that this conflict would cost $50 billion. NPP Research Director testified at a congressional forum, $378 billion could pay for the following: health care coverage for all uninsured children during this entire war; four-year scholarships to a public university for all of this and next year’s graduating seniors; hire more than 6 million teachers; build 700 new elementary schools in each state; every american could get free gas for a year; construction of 500,000 affordable housing units; the Coast Guard’s estimate on funds needed for port security; tripling the energy conservation budget in the US Department of Energy; and reducing this year’s budget deficit by half.