The New York Times states that the White House internal figures use the One Million per Year per Soldier as a working number.  The 40,000 troops General McChrystal is asking for would cost $40-56 billion per year.  'Beefing up' Afghan Security Forces would assumedly cost plenty more. 

It could mean that the overall military budget couse rise to $734 billion, or 10% higher than the peak Bush White House budget of $667 billion.  How would this play with Congressional Appropriations committees? 

Senior members of the House Appropriations Committee have already expressed reservations about the potential long-term costs of expanding the war in Afghanistan. And Mr. Obama could find it difficult to win approval for the additional spending in Congress, where he would have to depend on Republicans to counter defections from liberal Democrats.   -NY Times

 The Times quotes a senior White House Official who says these costs are helping to driving the President to add to any option the end game of leaving Afghanistan as quickly as possible.

 The unnamed official also said that if 20,000 troops were deployed, the cost would cost about $21 billion a year, but would mainly expand the training of Afghans.

These calculations come at a time when the White House is ordering a 5% cut to domestic agencies.  Republicans and Blue Dogs want the deficit reigned it, but may be his main allies in a build-up in appropriations for Afghanistan.  Wow, how ironic.

U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eickenberry (former General in charge of US forces in Afghanistan) is against additional troop build-ups; he is worried about Karzai's 'stability', and speaks to the corruption and weakness of the central government.  Reps. Davis Obey and John Murtha doubt many Dems will vote to allocate the funds.  Murtha will support the President, he said, but is a bit agog that the total for spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could be $ONE TRILLION per year in 2011. 

Try to get your mind around these numbers. 

 (Photo from  http://www.militaryspot.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=28   

 You might want to take a look.