Preliminary Evidence on the Allocation of U.S. Army Deaths from Operation Iraqi Freedom

Abstract

Political influence on the use of the nation's war-making resources is considered in this study. Given the ‘tax-like’ consequences arising from military fatalities, rational political agents may engage in behavior that minimizes the negative electoral consequences resulting from the fatalities. An empirical model of the state-by-state allocation of U.S. Army fatalities resulting from Operation Iraqi Freedom is developed and tested. The results suggest that political influence originating in the White House is present in the allocation of fatalities from the military action in Iraq, but that Congressional effects, if any, are much weaker. In particular, population-adjusted fatality rates are lower in states that were highly contested ‘battleground’ states rich in Electoral College votes in the 2004 Presidential election. Copyright International Atlantic Economic Society 2006D78, H5,

The political economy of foreign fighter death in the Russo-Ukrainian War: the role of institutions, politics, and international trade

“…Next, only one specification in each case includes MedInc, and, consistent with Goff and Tollison (1987) and Cebula and Toma (2006), the coefficient estimate attached to it is negatively signed in each case. This suggests that, regardless of which side is being supported, foreign fighters who die on the battlefields of Ukraine tend to arrive there from lower income countries.…”

“…Following the Goff and Tollison (1987) approach, Cebula and Toma's (2006) analysis of Operation Iraqi Freedom follows the template established in Goff and Tollison (1987) by positing that presidential campaign strategies are influenced by the anticipated closeness of the election outcome across states in the Electoral College. Econometric results presented in the study indicate that the greater the competition for the electoral votes in a state during the 2004 U.S. Presidential election, the relatively fewer fatalities that state suffered.…”

“…Econometric results presented in the study indicate that the greater the competition for the electoral votes in a state during the 2004 U.S. Presidential election, the relatively fewer fatalities that state suffered. Additionally, Cebula and Toma report that fatalities were lower in states with U.S. Senate representation on that chamber's Armed Services Committee (Cebula and Toma, 2006). Next, the study by Mixon (2013), which follows the approach of Goff and Tollison (1987) and the subsequent study by Cebula and Toma (2006) and is most closely linked to the current one, investigates the allocation of deaths among the minor countries (i.e.…”

“…Additionally, Cebula and Toma report that fatalities were lower in states with U.S. Senate representation on that chamber's Armed Services Committee (Cebula and Toma, 2006). Next, the study by Mixon (2013), which follows the approach of Goff and Tollison (1987) and the subsequent study by Cebula and Toma (2006) and is most closely linked to the current one, investigates the allocation of deaths among the minor countries (i.e. countries other than the United States and England) involved in the Afghanistan War, also known as Operation Enduring Freedom , against the backdrop of political influence exerted from various quarters.…”

“…An intriguing stream of public choice research that has developed over the past few decades that examines whether the disposition of military casualties during conflicts is, at times, impacted by the political desires of the government officials who are in a position to influence that disposition (Anderson and Tollison, 1991; Cebula and Toma, 2006; Crisp and Mixon, 2011; Goff and Tollison, 1987; Mixon, 2013; Mixon and Treviño, 2002; Zerkle, 2009). The present study seeks to extend that stream of research in a novel way, namely, by examining the political economy of foreign fighter deaths in the Russo-Ukrainian War since the 24 February 2022 invasion 1 .…”