DOD

A Less Competitive Pentagon?

UPDATED 22:56 PM EDT, April 1, 2013 | BY Phillip Swarts

The number of companies the Defense Department contracts with has slowly been dwindling, concerning investigators that the drop in competition might lead to higher prices.

“Competition is the cornerstone of a sound acquisition process and a critical tool for achieving the best return on investment for taxpayers,” said a report by the Government Accountability Office, Congress’ watchdog arm.

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UPDATED 14:21 PM EDT, March 20, 2013

Security Snafu

HONOLULU (AP) — A civilian defense contractor who works in intelligence at the U.S. Pacific Command has been charged with giving national security secrets to a 27-year-old Chinese woman he was dating, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Monday.

Benjamin Pierce Bishop, 59, is accused of sending the woman an email last May with information on existing war plans, nuclear weapons and U.S. relations with international partners, according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Honolulu.

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UPDATED 22:29 PM EDT, March 10, 2013

Burning Past Safety

Some troops serving in Afghanistan faced unnecessary increased risks to their safety because the Air Force poorly managed construction projects, an internal Defense Department investigation has found.

The Air Force Center for Engineering and Environment (AFCEE) wasted $36.9 million and put military personnel at Camps Bastion and Leatherneck at risk because they didn’t keep a close enough eye on the contractors hired to complete the tasks, the Pentagon inspector general reported.

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UPDATED 12:07 PM EST, March 6, 2013

Making Taxpayers Sick

Multiple government agencies are inspecting the same lab sites that work with hazardous materials like anthrax, an unnecessary overlap that wastes the government money as it faces budget cuts brought about by sequestration, a federal watchdog warns.

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UPDATED 7:53 AM EST, November 20, 2012

Department of Everything?

Beer.  Dinosaurs.  Space travel.

Usually not words associated with the Pentagon.

But that's what Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., found when he took a look at some of the spending by the nation's military.

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