Incredibly Unsurprising News

The GAO has determined that the Pentagon is completely hopeless when it attempts to address fraud. 

This, of course, assumes that the Pentagon is actually interested in addressing fraud.

Fraud is a feature, not a bug:

The Pentagon is falling short in its efforts to combat fraud in defense contracts, according to a federal audit obtained by CQ Roll Call.

The Government Accountability Office report, to be made public Monday, credits Defense Department leaders with making some progress in establishing systems to find and root out fraud. But the audit nonetheless documents several ways military and civilian officials are lagging in their efforts.

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“The scope and scale of this activity makes DOD procurement inherently susceptible to fraud,” the GAO said.

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The lawmakers who requested the report expressed dismay about its findings.

“The Pentagon doesn’t seem to want to get serious about combating the fraud, waste, and financial mismanagement that has been its legacy for decades,” said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., chairman of the Budget Committee, one of two lawmakers who requested the report.

Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, D-N.Y., who chairs the Committee on Oversight and Reform, was the other.

“This failure to safeguard taxpayer dollars is completely unacceptable, and I urge the Biden Administration to quickly and fully implement GAO’s recommendations and put the Defense Department on a path to operate more efficiently and effectively, with the confidence that it is not spending money on fraudulent contracts,” Maloney said in a statement.

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In the auditors’ report, they cited signs that some in the Defense Department may not be treating the problem with the urgency it deserves.

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Sanders, in his statement, said the report shows that the Pentagon does not “want to get serious about spending taxpayer dollars wisely and effectively.” He called that “absolutely unacceptable.”

It is unacceptable, but it is also largely intentional.

The politicians vote money to corrupt defense contractors, who steal from the taxpayers, and then kick back money to the politicians as campaign donations, and to the generals, as post retirement do-nothing jobs.

Rinse, lather, repeat.

It needs to stop.