Report: $3 billion allocated to the Troops was diverted to Senate pet projects

  According to an analysis of the latest defense funding bill senators managed to divert almost $3 billion dollars to pet projects, otherwise known as earmarks, away from troops fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq. Money that was supposed to be spent on such necessities as fuel, ammunition, and training programs for our troops who are fighting in the Middle East were instead sent to such projects as building a new WWII museum and building an education institute that will be named after Ted Kennedy.

  While the veterans of WWII deserve our respect and gratitude, taking money away from troops that are currently fighting a war is not the way to accomplish this. I support building a new museum to honor the greatest generation but not at the expense of those fighting overseas right now, and I certainly do not support diverting funds from the war effort to honor Ted Kennedy by naming a new institute after him while our troops are being denied the fuel, training, and ammunition that they need.

  This is only the tip of the iceberg, there are 776 other pet projects that senators deemed more worthy of receiving funds than our fighting men and women in the Middle East. This is an absolute disgrace and a real kick in the ass to the brave men and women who are defending our country.

  Winslow Wheeler,who has worked with both Democrats and Republicans on defense spending has never seen ineptitude on this level before.

in 30 years on Capitol Hill, I never saw Congress mangle the defense budget as badly as this year

  I oppose the use of earmarks altogether and I understand that we will never rid ourselves of this abuse of taxpayer dollars but for the senate to divert funds that were meant to provide our troops with supplies that they desperately need is unconscionable.

  Men and women who are fighting in defense of the United States are going to die because funding was taken from them so that Ted Kennedy could have an institution named after him and senators could bring home the bacon to their respective states. If we are going to fight and if we are going to win we have to ensure that we  provide our troops with everything that they need in order to secure victory– that includes, and this should be obvious to everyone including senators of the United States, providing the proper funding.

  Senators who diverted money away from the troops in order to pay for their pet projects at home will have blood on their hands– the blood of the servicemen to whom they have denied the proper funding.

  If the senate is not wiling to properly fund the troops and if the senate thinks that pet projects at home are more important than providing the troops what they need to fight this war than perhaps it is time to surrender in Iraq and Afghanistan and bring our troops home before more of them die because of the misplaced priorities that is evident in the latest defense funding bill.