CASE STUDY #2 | Hiding in Plain Sight: Time for a Pentagon Audit

6 Comments

1. Ed Payne
   Sep 21, 2012 @ 13:14:49

   The article states that the Marine Corps performed an audit and streamlined processes and obtained a 3 to 1 return on investment. Did they return that money to the taxpayer? Where did it go? What makes us think that money will be returned to the taxpayer or did they simply find somewhere else to spend it?

   We are at a unique time. We have a national will, political capital, to solve this problem. We cannot waste the national will simply by cutting a few dollars here and there as this is NOT a long term solution and will not solve the financial problems we face for the long term. The federal government has grown beyond society’s capability to support it both from a financial and regulatory stand point. The issue before us is what functions the government performs, which of those functions are inhibiting the growth of our economy, which functions actually work and which don’t, and which functions need to be streamlined.

   Congress has 13+- buckets (departments) into which they pour money. Temporarily replacing the buckets with smaller buckets will only last so long as the political will lasts. The only way to ensure permanent financial and regulatory resolution to the issue is to eliminate departments and agency’s that have a proven dysfunctional track record, then go back an audit and streamline the remaining functions. Otherwise, as soon as the election is over and the political will passes, or the left gets their pound of flesh out of the DOD, we will be back to the status quo.

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2. Thomas Ssawyer
   Sep 20, 2012 @ 14:05:06

   to say auditing the LARGEST expenditure in our federal government budget is myopic, is crazy. Look, the Pentagon, for the past few budgets ,has said they don’t need or want some costly programs…. The F-22 for example…. but because that project is in some Appropriation Committee Senators home district it is forced down their throat… It is high time we not only audited the Defense Budget but severely cut it…. I worked at BIW in Bath Maine helping to build Aegis Destroyers for the Navy…. the amount of money being funneled through these programs and into the hands of General Dynamics and the rest is STAGGERING. It is essentially Government workfare… States have come to rely on these jobs as the real manufacturing jobs have been shipped out of the country. This is by design , I believe , by the defense industry…. if a State is so dependent on these jobs.. it is a very safe bet they will remain . We shake our fist at the poor…. people who get food stamps trying to put some food in their bellies….. meanwhile huge corporations like General Dynamics and McDonnell Douglas reap vast amounts of tax payer monies by overcharging our government for wages and materials.

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3. HUGH T LAYNE
   Sep 18, 2012 @ 14:35:26

   I THINK YOU HAVE A GOOD IDEA, I SERVED MY TIME IN THE NAVY 1955 AND WAS IN KOREA JUST BEFORE THEY SIGNED THE ARMISTIS.

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4. Ed Payne
   Sep 18, 2012 @ 14:31:49

   The more I think about this the more my blood boils.
   DCMA’s entire purpose in life is to manage, oversee and AUDIT contracts.
   DODIG’s entire purpose is to :
   a) conduct, supervise, monitor, and initiate audits, evaluations, and investigations relating to programs and operations of the Department of Defense,

   b) provide leadership and coordination and recommend policies for activities designed to promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in the administration of, and to prevent and detect fraud and abuse in, such programs and operations,

   c) provide a means for keeping the secretary of defense and the Congress fully and currently informed about problems and deficiencies relating to the administration of such programs and operations and the necessity for and progress of corrective action, and

   d) promote national security by conducting objective and independent audits, investigations, and other activities to prevent, detect and rectify problems in DoD programs and operations, and to identify opportunities for improving efficiency and effectiveness.

   So, Mr. Penetta, in keeping with my assertion that you eliminate nonfunctional organizations, start with these two as they are obviously asleep at the switch and have let your entire organization run amok. Then you will have enough money to do your audit!

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5. Ed Payne
   Sep 18, 2012 @ 14:21:41

   If Mr. Penetta truly believes that a complete audit is necessary then do it! You are the top dog in DOD. Oh wait, you want congress to give you more money so you can do the audit so you can tell us what a great guy you are cause you saved us money….. what a racket!

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6. Ed Payne
   Sep 18, 2012 @ 11:22:50

   The one thing I have learned over the last 60 years, 30 of which as a federal contractor, is never pay attention to what a politician says, but watch what s/he does very carefully. For every general you find that agrees with this I can find one that disagrees so I am very dubious of the stated expected results and worry that CVA is caving to the anti-military positions of the left. Even IF we find $250 billion in savings, congress is more likely to simply reallocate that money to another federal give away than they are to return it to the taxpayer.

   Simply performing an audit of the DOD is very myopic and does nothing for us other than identify what money is being spent where. Unless there is a baseline of authority for the DOD, you cannot simply cut till it hurts, that is what sequestration is doing.

   What is the 25/50 year plan for our defense posture? We cannot simply look out the window to see through the next presidential term, we have to look at transformations that are taking place around the world and identify what global capabilities we need to have to best posture the US to address those events. Then, we can compare the results of the audit to the DOD authority and decide when and where any cuts should occur. Then realign all accounting systems/procedures to preclude the tendency to wander from the approved authority. This is not a 2 or 3 year effort, this would likely take a decade or more, and several billion dollars, to complete because of numerous disparate accounting systems and methodology not only inside the DOD but inside all contractors. WE DON’T HAVE THE LUXURY OF WAITING 10 YEARS!

   Department/Agency expenditures being used as the measuring stick to determine cuts is short sighted and demonstrates an overall lack of understanding of the problem we are facing. RESULTS need to be the largest determining factor in deciding where cuts should come from. Each Agency needs to be rated based on the results being provided and cut those agencies in their entirety that are not performing. For my money, the DOD and the FAA are the best bang for the buck out of the entire Federal Bungle and should be the last to be stomped on. The Department of Education should be the first to go as we are spending more and more each year and our students are learning less and less. If we want to address Social Security and Medicare, the first step is move anyone that is not retired onto welfare and Medicaid and take the SS payroll taxes out of the general fund and put it directly into SS. That solves the SS issue. Turn the EPA into a self funded Insurance Company, that is what it is and get it off the taxpayers back. The EPA does not exist to address me spilling a quart of oil when I am working on my car, it exists to deter irresponsible companies from dumping millions of gallons of toxins in the environment so let them buy insurance.

   This is about the future of the United States, not just the DOD. We cannot allow this critical issue to be hacked over because of we lack the courage to stand up to the liberals. It is time to put on our big boy pants and stand tall, even if it means we don’t get re-elected or get called names. We MUST start thinking… A LOT.. Climb out of the box and think of new ways to solve problems.

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