THE WAR ON WASTE - Rumsfeld Says 2.3 Trillion Dollars Missing

CBS News ^ | January 29, 2002 | By Vince Gonzales

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Is exposing government waste, fraud, and abuse a bad thing to do on FR? I don't think so since Alamo Girl's site is linked from FR.

[Uncle Bill]

Citizens Against Government Waste

Waste-O-Meter

Reviving the Reform Agenda
"A House Budget Committee analysis of federal spending has concluded that mismanagement of government programs is growing at an alarming rate, costing taxpayers untold billions of dollars even as more money is requested for these programs.

.."Last month, we disclosed that government auditors had documented at least $19 billion annually in overpayments, but the problem is far worse than that. Government financial management is in such poor shape that the General Accounting Office (GAO) says that the full extent of improper government payments simply cannot be determined."

Click me:

Senator details billions in alleged wasteful spending
"While promising to attack waste seems popular on its face, the effort faces several obstacles.

Republicans have not decided exactly how to do it, with GOP senators generally less enthusiastic than their House counterparts about the campaign. And in an election year, some Republicans seem reluctant to target waste in Medicare, food stamps and other popular programs."

A-Z

Medicare Paying for Health Care for the Dead

$19 BILLION IN FEDERAL IMPROPER PAYMENTS

---

Pentagon Auditors Fail Peer Review

GOVEXEC.Com
By Kellie Lunney
klunney@govexec.com
December 7, 2001

The Pentagon inspector general’s office failed to follow proper procedures for conducting audits last year, according to a new report from federal investigators.

Defense auditors left out evidence to support their conclusions and occasionally altered investigative paperwork after reports were completed, according to a review conducted by the Health and Human Services Department’s inspector general. Agency IG offices conduct peer reviews of each other’s work every few years to comply with government auditing standards.

HHS looked at 18 of 145 audits conducted by the Pentagon’s IG office between April 2000 and March 2001 and gave the department an ‘unclean’ opinion on its work. For six of the 18 Defense audits reviewed, HHS found that the working papers, which provide evidence supporting the auditors’ conclusions, were prepared or changed after the final reports were issued.

“If working papers are added or changed after a report is issued, they may no longer support the issued report or clearly support the auditor’s conclusions and judgments,” the review said.

Health and Human Services conducted a review of the Pentagon’s IG office after a whistleblower alleged, and a subsequent internal investigation confirmed, that the office had destroyed and altered documents to get a passing grade on a peer review by IRS auditors. Defense auditors who had “gussied up” certain documents to pass the review were fired, according to a Pentagon official who spoke on background.

The Pentagon agreed with HHS’ peer review and has started to put in place a series of reforms to root out the waste, fraud and abuse in its own office. All of the Defense Department’s audit divisions will be trained in ethics and government auditing standards. The agency has also created a quality management council consisting of senior executives to oversee reviews and ensure accountability.

“Like any organization we made mistakes, and we are grateful that we had people from the outside to come in and help us fix them,” said David Steensma, acting assistant inspector general for auditing.

But the Pentagon may have to go to greater lengths to fix some of the problems in its IG’s office, according to Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, the ranking member of the Finance Committee.

“Once President Bush’s nominee for the IG job is in place, he will need to clean house from top to bottom,” Grassley said. “Heads must roll.”

Bush has nominated Joseph E. Schmitz for the Pentagon IG’s job, but the Senate has not yet confirmed him. Robert Lieberman is the current acting inspector general.

---

Eight U.S. Marine Officers Charged in Osprey Probe

Osprey Chief Admits Falsifying Records

Marine Osprey Coverup Probe Reaches Top Pentagon Brass

[UberVernunft]

I heard a rumor that some low-ranking pentagon dude spent the 2.3 trill on a new computer, the game quake, a T-1 line, some pringles and diet coke, and the rest on lottery tickets.

Sounds sweet.

[Vineyard]

Very good point here! One 1N4848 diode costs only a nickel in the electronics market but I recall seeing one government report listing those for like $7.50 each! Sheesh!

But if that diode was in a satellite or a high performance jet plane, and the failure of the circuit meant the loss of the satellite or the jet, and mission failure, or ??? - wouldn't you rather have the Mil-Spec diode rather than the one from RadioShack?

And the contractor who sells the part can't buy them from Radio Shack, must package them to meet Mil-Spec requirements, must certify compliance with dozens of various "applicable laws and regulations" ... (time for the lawyers in your company to review to ensure you have all i's dotted and t's crossed, lest you be found in violation.)

My Dad worked for Hughes Aircraft back in the 80's (retired in 1992). He indiated that Hughes was threatening to tell DoD that the company would no longer provide any parts that could be obtained at Radio Shack, and the gov't could negotiate with Radio Shack for Mil-Spec applicability, reliability, warranty issues, etc. Their comment was that the very small profit on handling these piece/parts was too small and the bad PR that the company got (baseless allegations, inuendos, etc.) wasn't worth the small profit.

My suggestion to those of you thinking that the government is getting swindled by big companies ... go into competition with them on supplying spare parts. Check the Commerce Business Daily (CBD) ... the government is always looking for new suckers (er. . companies) willing to do business with an organization that is notoriously picky, hard to do business, insists on many different rules/regulations/requirements ... and if you miss one, you can be fined, denied payment, and even locked up.

But for those who feel that the costs are too high ... go into business, underbid the big dogs, and make a fair profit, and show us all how it is done. Otherwise ... sit down and shut the heck up!!!

Mike

[dalebert]

Cohen. Guess you all know there were reports of this and other missing money before Bush took office.

[Uncle Bill]

"The Pentagon's financial statements are in such poor condition that they cannot be audited" - Comptroller-General, Mr David Walker

DAVID M. WALKER - Comptroller General of the United States
"Immediately prior to his appointment as Comptroller General, Mr. Walker was a partner and global managing director of Arthur Andersen LLP's human capital services practice and a member of the board of Arthur Andersen Financial Advisors"

[Mensch]

Time to privatize the military?

[Uncle Bill]

Judicial Watch Fights for Military Whistleblowers

Judicial Watch
Staff

We ask our military officers to embody courage against the enemy on the battlefield, and then reward them with stars and stripes for their efforts. And yet, when two of our nation's own channeled their courage in such a way as to expose corruption among the ranks, their careers were destroyed, raising concerns about the integrity of our military legal system.

JW has asked Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to investigate the cases of LtCol. Timothy Killam and Col. Ernest Beinhart, two whistleblowers who were subject to reprisals from commanding officers after they exposed waste, fraud and abuse at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Garmisch, Germany, an overseas officer school. JW originally made this request of Clinton Defense Secretary William Cohen.

Both LtCol. Killam and Col. Beinhart possess excellent character, professional credentials and performance evaluations. And yet, both officers were targeted for dismissal by their superiors and had their complaints stonewalled by the top officials charged with investigating them.

"The history at the Marshall Center is anyone who brings forward problems is removed. They create a paper trail to provide justification for the removal," said LtCol. Killam in an interview with Marine Corps Times.

In Killam's case, retaliation went far beyond his removal. He was forced to undergo psychiatric tests before being involuntarily transferred to the Naval War College in Newport, R.I.-his reward for exposing mismanagement at Marshall's conference center. Killam filed complaints all the way up the chain of command to then-Defense Secretary Cohen, to no avail. Cohen, of course, was a Clinton appointee.

Col. Beinhart had served as commandant of the Marshal Center College of Strategic Studies and Defense Economics. After he warned his civilian boss Alvin Bernstein to stop spending money on things for which he was not authorized, Beinhart was fired. Beinhart's dismissal came just four months after Bernstein publicly praised him for helping launch the school's new program.

The Pentagon, for its part, is relying upon a convenient and false interpretation of military code to justify its behavior.

Both officers' complaints were filed under 138 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which allows officers to seek redress when targeted by superior officers. In Killam's case, they falsely claim that the wrongs allegedly committed against him were technically not committed by his "commanding officer." Killam counters by saying that his latest complaints involve the failure of the original investigating body to deal with the complaint, not the original indiscretion.

In Beinhart's case, the Pentagon claims Bernstein cannot technically be Beinhart's commanding officer because he is a civilian, yet they cannot to this day tell him who his commanding officer is.

Since most of those responsible for the stonewalling tactics moved on with the change in Administrations, Judicial Watch expects the new regime to review the cases thoroughly.

"We don't believe Secretary Rumsfeld wishes to continue a system that abuses military personnel," said JW President Tom Fitton.

[oust the louse]

I say that we increase our federal taxes to make up for this.This is terrible.If we get them umpteen trillion back I bet they account for it this time.

[AmericaUnited]

I'm extremely skeptical of this from CBS! All of a sudden, when Bush wants to increase military spending, these scum from CBS point out that money possibly might be wasted in the defense budget and of course we should not raise it but should prune the waste

We should do both! You will never hear this scum talking about the waste in their sacred cow social programs budget!!!

[grumpster-dumpster]

I'm not excusing government waste... in fact I think the people in charge of the money should be held criminally responsible.

Having said that, you folks need to know how the "system" works. Let's say your a congress-critter and you want subsidies for people who produce crabgrass. You know the rest of congress won't stick their necks out for a bill enouraging crabgrass... so you attach a "rider" to the DoD budget that gives crabgrass growers $2000.00 per acre. You further insure through your rider that the money is appropriated through DoD funding.

The beneits are enormous... not only do you gain re-election campaign funds from crabrass growers... you (and the rest of congress) get to announce you fully support the DoD as evidenced by your positive vote on the defense appropriations bill!

Can I now have my $8,000 dollars back?

[Uncle Bill]

Audit Over Pentagon Spare Parts
"Despite repeated complaints that military readiness is being hurt by a shortage of spare parts, the Pentagon cannot document whether $1.1 billion Congress provided in response to such pleas actually went for spare parts, according to a new audit."

---

Audit: Medicare lost $13.5 billion in 1999

[xzins]

Audits are of previous years. Therefore, this is money that was missing from CLINTON'S watch.

[patriciaruth]

It isn't "waste", you guys; it's graft. It is rampant throughout the government.

Look at the "post office" that the Democrats in the House were running.

George is a penny pincher, and did a lot of things in Texas to squeeze money out of the system. But he is preoccupied with the war now.

He did tell his agencies to appoint someone to oversee efficiency in spending, like a corporate CFO. Then the planes hit the Towers and the Pentagon, and I don't know what's happened since.

Remember, we haven't even gotten the Senate to nominate our deputy administrators, so we have only a toehold in most of the agencies. Clinton's people, far as I know, are still running most of the country.

[Grassontop]

It isn't "waste", you guys; it's graft.

No! Its called "Enron", Clintons, Gores, McAuliff, Joe Liberman, Tom "DAZZLE EM" Daschle, and all those murky rats associated with the Clintons. It also wouldn't surprise me if this money also didn't go to help fund the terrorists on Clintons watch! Grassontop

[Uncle Bill]

Bush Administration Holds to Clinton Budget for Pentagon Spending in 2002

Defense Spending Plan Faces Scrutiny

The Coming Firefight over Defense Spending

Bush Under Pressure to Boost Defense Spending

Bush Demands More Defense Spending

Non-defense items clog Defense budget

Rumsfeld on defense

Rumsfeld Proposes Defense Budget

GOP Spending Breaks The Budget

Both Sides Boast of the Budget and Its Increases in Spending

[calmseas]

Look for it under "Bubba" at a bank in China.

[nunya bidness]

Another excellent post Uncle Bill.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the heads up!

Here's a related item from the DSL on Clinton's watch:

"The report by the House Appropriations Committee cites several examples in which the Pentagon failed to notify Congress about the redirecting of appropriated funds to projects not approved by Congress... Asked about the report, Cohen told reporters at the Pentagon that it overstated the problem. He said the report ‘comes as somewhat of a surprise to all of us in the Pentagon,’ considering that of the more than 5,000 military projects managed by the Pentagon, only six are cited as being problems." Associated Press July 22, 1999 Tampa Bay Online

"Black Ops" comes to mind ... which, under an anti-military, anti-national security environment might be funded creatively (ahem...)