“On September 19 [2002], he [President Bush] met behind closed doors with nearly a dozen House members from both parties at the White House, and Representative Howard Berman, a California Democrat, asked if [budget director Mitch] Daniels would be willing to spend the money needed for nation building after Saddam was toppled. ‘Mark my words–yes, we will spend the necessary money,’ Bush responded.”
– Peter Baker, Days of Fire, Page 219