Commission on Wartime Contracting Cites Billions in Pentagon Waste
The bi-partisan Commission on Wartime Contracting identified over $30 billion in obvious Pentagon waste related to war contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The fact that there is even a news item related to the systemic problem of waste within the federal contracting system is probably a baby step in the right direction. The fact that the story focuses on specific expenditures within operations in Iraq and Afghanistan doesn't really reflect the underlying problems within the federal procurement system as it relates to defense, in particular. With so many agencies and so much public funding dedicated to the broadest interpretation of National Security, billions upon billions are spent incredibly inefficiently, at best - or blatantly wasted, at worst - on an annual basis.
There is almost no oversight when it comes to the money that is legislatively approved to fund the U.S. war machine, which has ballooned beyond any capacity to effectively measure it. The $30 billion dollar number cited in the report by the Commission on Wartime Contracting is just a number that can be clearly tied to a failed project in Iraq. Money that was paid for something that will never be completed - and thus wasted.
But the problems with domestic and international defense contractors runs much, much deeper than that. Government agencies like the Department of Defense, NSA, DIA, the Department of Homeland Security, and many others, employee tens of thousands of direct employees and contractors for projects that could be handled at a fraction of their current cost if done so efficiently.
As the U.S. attempts to come to grips with its massive spending problem, it should start with its defense infrastructure, its agencies and the contractors that support them. This sector probably accounts for the majority of wasteful spending currently occurring within the U.S. government.
There is almost no oversight when it comes to the money that is legislatively approved to fund the U.S. war machine, which has ballooned beyond any capacity to effectively measure it. The $30 billion dollar number cited in the report by the Commission on Wartime Contracting is just a number that can be clearly tied to a failed project in Iraq. Money that was paid for something that will never be completed - and thus wasted.
But the problems with domestic and international defense contractors runs much, much deeper than that. Government agencies like the Department of Defense, NSA, DIA, the Department of Homeland Security, and many others, employee tens of thousands of direct employees and contractors for projects that could be handled at a fraction of their current cost if done so efficiently.
As the U.S. attempts to come to grips with its massive spending problem, it should start with its defense infrastructure, its agencies and the contractors that support them. This sector probably accounts for the majority of wasteful spending currently occurring within the U.S. government.
Post Comment