The US has basically flushed $30 billion down
the toilet, according to a bipartisan commission looking into the money
spent on contracts and grants in Iraq and Afghanistan. It found that at least one
out of every six dollars spent in the last 10 years has been money
wasted. In a report to be submitted to Congress Wednesday, the
commission finds that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were begun
“without adequate planning or contract-management personnel to handle
the enormous scale and numbers of contracts,” write the group’s heads.
And just as much money could go to waste all over again if the
countries’ governments can't or won't maintain US-funded programs after
we leave: The report cites $300 million we spent on a power plant that
the Afghan government lacks the funds and expertise to run as an
example.
“Poor
planning, inadequate competition, lax accountability, and subpar
performance, or outright misconduct by some contractors and federal
employees” are among the issues the report confronts.