Project on Governent Oversight: Editor's Choice 8/3

Editor's Choice

House Votes to Save More than $4 Billion at the Pentagon
In a major victory last week, the House voted for more than $4 billion in savings in the Pentagon budget supported by POGO and our allies. Major sources of waste and unnecessary spending were cut along with a DoD contract worth $554 million with a Russian defense giant that has been providing attack helicopters to the Syrian government. Read more on POGO’s blog.
POGO Obtains DoD Memo on 20 Percent HQ Spending Cut
POGO was the first to obtain and publish a Pentagon memo outlining a 20 percent cut to civilian and military staff at management headquarters. The cuts could save $1.5 to 2 billion in the next five years, but it is still only a small fraction of the Pentagon’s budget. Read more on POGO’s blog.
New Report Slams Contract Oversight in Afghanistan
Reconstruction in Afghanistan is plagued by “a pervasive lack of accountability,” according to a recent quarterly report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. One reason it got this bad is because contracting officials are “simply not doing their jobs,” according to the report. Read more on POGO’s blog. 
Contractors Still Avoiding Major Sequestration Damage
A new set of earning reports from major defense contractors again shows that the sequester budget cuts were not as apocalyptic as contractors anticipated. Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, and General Dynamics all had positive reports with increased profits and positive outlooks. Read more on POGO’s blog.