Shock: Government Contractors Abusing “Homeland Security” Cash Cow
by KTKJuly 27th, 2006
It’s hard to believe, I know, but the Bush administration has been issuing no-bid contracts like candy to hand-picked government contractors - some of whom were allowed to write their own contract performance requirements - who then, in a move that would certainly astonish anyone familiar with the history of such companies or this administration, have been systematically inflating costs, embezzling funds, and manipulating the contracting process to guarantee themselves a permanent advantage.
Based on a comprehensive survey of hundreds of government audits, 32 Homeland Security Department contracts worth a total of $34 billion have “experienced significant overcharges, wasteful spending, or mismanagement,” according to the report, which is slated for release today and was obtained in advance by The Washington Post.
The value of contracts awarded without full competition increased 739 percent from 2003 to 2005, to $5.5 billion, more than half the $10 billion awarded by the department that year. . . .
The report warns that the department is on the verge of making more mistakes by giving contractors too much latitude. It points to a planned multibillion-dollar contract for border security that has only the vaguest of requirements. “We’re asking you to come back and tell us how to do our business,” Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Michael P. Jackson told industry leaders in January. . . .
As contracting surged by 189 percent from 2003 to 2005, the department’s acquisition staff did not to keep pace, increasing by less than 20 percent. The average staffer is overseeing twice as much money now as in 2003. As the burden grew, contracting officers increasingly turned to sole-source contracts or contracts for which only a limited number of firms were allowed to compete. . . .
Paul C. Light, professor of public service at New York University, said industry consolidation in defense and homeland security increasingly enables firms to present themselves as sole-source bidders, at the same time that government expertise and contract management staffs have been hollowed out.
“They’d like to boll-weevil themselves down to the agencies and create dependencies that will last for years, if not decades,” Light said.
Who could ever have predicted such a thing?
Categories: General, Iraq, Katrina, News & Current Events, Politics |
I agree with you that the overall state of government contracting appears to be in trouble. I would add that staffing a war of choice with the underclass while simultaneously reducing the tax burden on the wealthly, and having future generations pay for the whole thing, is a disgrace.
That is what the entire system is based upon. Don’t throw too many stones at the current administration though - save enough in your pile to hurl at your local representatives, and representatives across the aisle as well.
So you’re saying you’ve converted to a small government advocate?
You may think this kind of abuse is specific to one administration or political party, but it’s not. It’s the inevitable result of big government agencies. The Democratic Party can’t run on a platform opposing this kind of thing, lest the citizenry realize that.
Big government sucks and is inherently corrupt. Where government is, you might as well just make an automatic allotment for graft. Look at the Big Dig.
Not inherently.
Just about every credible economist today will tell you… sometimes the government must be present in the market to stimulate growth and protect consumers.
George Washington once said “Government is not reason and it is not eloquence. It is force! Like fire it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. Never for a moment should it be left to irresponsible action!”
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its the corrupt government officials……….it should be audited
greedy goverment contractors is behind this corruption.make an investigation to point out who are they so that they may be filed administratively ……….
How long can a society of self-serving greedy people survive? I am afraid that with only a little common sense you can answer that question. If you are only taking from the source of your well being, and not putting anything back, the source will eventually begin to dry up. Eventually, you will end up in a “kill or be killed culture” The killers will become fewer, but more powerful, and all others will grow to be more vulnerable. If you doubt this, all you have to do is observe the changes that have, and are now taking place. Proportionally, more people are living off of government programs than ever before. Their food comes from the government; their health care comes from the government; because they are unemployed, the government sends them a paycheck. The government is allowing big business to financially rape the American worker who has become so accustomed to it that he accepts it as a normal way of life with some complaining, but no real protest. Our tax monies are being scattered around the world by our government, with practically no accountability. Much of this money finds its way back into the hands of our politicians and big businesses. Has there ever been a real non-partisan investigation of Brown & Root, Halliburton?