{"id":111730,"date":"2018-05-21T12:01:16","date_gmt":"2018-05-21T11:01:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=111730"},"modified":"2018-05-21T09:38:49","modified_gmt":"2018-05-21T08:38:49","slug":"war-profiteers-vs-the-people-of-the-united-states","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2018\/05\/war-profiteers-vs-the-people-of-the-united-states\/","title":{"rendered":"War Profiteers vs. The People of the United States"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>25 Apr 2018 – <\/em>We bring to the attention of our readers an important report on the trillions of dollars of unaccounted U.S. taxpayers money which have served to line the pockets of war profiteers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact that this mind-blowing amount of missing tax money<\/strong> has not been a lightning rod for mainstream media coverage, congressional investigations, and a lead issue for all political representatives, particularly those who claim to care about our skyrocketing national debt, calls into serious question the integrity and legitimacy of all leadership and responsible parties. \u2026 We are trapped in a vicious cycle; increased military spending, with inadequate oversight, leads to billions of our annual taxpayer dollars being given directly to the people who profit of war<\/strong>, terrorism and societal destabilization in general \u2013 as evidence clearly demonstrates.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cCondemnation without investigation is the height of ignorance.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u2013\u00a0Albert Einstein<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>OPENING STATEMENT<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to United States government documents, since 1998, the Office of the Inspector General has reported on $21 Trillion in unaccounted for taxpayer money.<\/p>\n

As unbelievable and absurd as that sounds, the actual total of unaccounted for taxpayer money at the Pentagon is most likely significantly more than $21 trillion.<\/p>\n

Researchers are unable to get data for every year of military spending, many Pentagon agencies do not have any publically available records, hundreds of thousands of transactions have been erased, and an estimated millions of transactions do not have any traceable record.<\/p>\n

In fact, the Pentagon, which handles more than half of all of our tax dollars allocated by Congress, has never been properly audited \u2013 despite the fact that an annual audit has been required by law for all federal government agencies since 1996.<\/p>\n

As you will see in detail throughout this series of reports, not only have trillions of taxpayer dollars been knowingly dumped into a shockingly unaccountable black hole, Congress is not even sure how much money has been appropriated and given out in the first place.<\/p>\n

United States government officials who work for the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) have been reporting on this stunning issue for years.<\/p>\n

The fact that this mind-blowing amount of missing tax money has not been a lightning rod for mainstream media coverage, congressional investigations, and a lead issue for all political representatives, particularly those who claim to care about our skyrocketing national debt, calls into serious question the integrity and legitimacy of all leadership and responsible parties.<\/p>\n

Beyond the outright disregard for the rule of law and lack of consequences for ignoring the annual audit legal requirement, the Pentagon is also flagrantly in violation of the U.S. Constitution.<\/p>\n

The U.S. Constitution in Article I, Section 9, Clause 7 specifically states:<\/p>\n

\u201cNo Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe range of what we think and do is limited by what we fail to notice. And because we fail to notice, there is little we can do to change until we notice how failing to notice shapes our thoughts and deeds.\u201d
\n<\/em>~ The Politics of Experience<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Under the guise of National Security, Global War Profiteers have looted trillions of taxpayer dollars from the U.S. Treasury and have destabilized much of the world by increasing terrorism 6500% since the \u201cWar on Terror\u201d began, while paying off politicians and erecting an unprecedented global surveillance network.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Due to the National Security State\u2019s control of mainstream media companies and their systematic suppression of whistleblowers, independent journalists and alternative media outlets, the overwhelming majority of the American population is unaware of how dangerously corrupt our government has become.<\/p>\n

While civilian angst among most demographics has been dramatically rising, the American People are tragically misinformed.<\/p>\n

We are trapped in a vicious cycle; increased military spending, with inadequate oversight, leads to billions of our annual taxpayer dollars being given directly to the people who profit off of war, terrorism and societal destabilization in general \u2013 as evidence clearly demonstrates.<\/p>\n

The negative feedback loop then spirals; as terrorism and societal destabilization become more widespread, corrupt and\/or shortsighted politicians then appropriate even more tax dollars for the military, with even less oversight, which leads to more funding, weapons and harmful technologies falling into the hands of terrorists, oppressive governments and predatory global corporations, as repressive technology and lethal weapons exponentially proliferate worldwide.<\/p>\n

The astounding lack of oversight concerning military spending is an open invitation for every criminal element.<\/p>\n

As a consequence to all of this military spending, Global Private Military Companies have now become more powerful than the nation-state governments that fund them.<\/p>\n

In the United States, Global Private Military Companies dominate both political parties and most of the government agencies that were created to protect the American People against predatory Global Interests.<\/p>\n

The Unaccountable System of Global War Profiteers<\/h3>\n

How is it possible that the lion\u2019s share of our tax money has gone into this unaccountable system of Global War Profiteers?<\/p>\n

1) Legalized Bribery: Campaign Finance, Lobbying & the Revolving Door<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since an audit of military spending has been required by law, Global Private Military Companies have given at least $240 million<\/a> in known campaign contributions to the Republican and Democratic parties.<\/p>\n

Given the loosening of campaign finance laws regarding \u201cdark money,\u201d it is impossible to account for all the money that Global Private Military Companies, their numerous shell companies and aligned interests have actually contributed.<\/p>\n

Since an audit of military spending has been required by law, known Global Private Military Companies have spent a stunning $2.3 billion<\/a> lobbying Congress.<\/p>\n

Beyond campaign finance and lobbying, the revolving door \u2013 between Global Private Military Companies and government officials \u2013 is a significant source of demonstrated corrupt behavior.<\/p>\n

Since an audit of military spending has been required by law, over 12,000<\/a>US government officials have gone through the revolving door with known Global Private Military Companies.<\/p>\n

2) The National Security Act\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Other than the corruptly implemented Legalized Bribery schemes, after an extensive analysis, it is evident that the National Security Act, and corresponding agencies and laws derived therefrom \u2013 with the power of secrecy that it provides \u2013 has been the primary enabler of the greatest theft of taxpayer wealth in history.<\/p>\n

Read more: Uncontrollable\u2014Pentagon and Corporate Contractors \u201cToo Big to Audit\u201d<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The National Security Act set several precedents that have severely undermined the U.S. Constitution. The National Security Act created the \u201cNational Military Establishment,\u201d the National Security Council and the Central Intelligence Agency, thereby codifying institutional secrecy.<\/p>\n

Corresponding laws, such as the State Secrets Privilege, Classified Information Procedures Act, Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the PATRIOT Act, the Totten Rule, The Espionage Act and the recent Executive Order 13526, which defines rules for the classification of information, have all played a pivotal role in concealing unprecedented criminal activity.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how the Center for Constitutional Rights explains the State Secrets Privilege (SSP):<\/p>\n

\u201cThe State Secrets Privilege originates in England where the law allows the king or queen the \u2018Crown Privilege,\u2019 which grants the monarch the absolute right to refuse to share information with Parliament or the courts.<\/em><\/p>\n

The U.S. Supreme Court then borrowed the SSP almost entirely\u2026. More recently \u2013 and more troublingly \u2013 the government has invoked the SSP in the very beginning of cases to dismiss them altogether\u2026.<\/em><\/p>\n

The State Secrets Privilege undermines the very idea of an independent judiciary; contradicts the core idea of judicial review, which is independent judges making independent evaluations of all of the facts; and essentially allows the executive branch to dictate to the federal courts what cases they can and can\u2019t hear\u2026.<\/em><\/p>\n

The greater good is actually served by denying the executive a trump card that would allow it to cover up its abuses of power.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Electronic Frontier Foundation sums it up this way:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Bush and the Obama Administration have aggressively used the \u2018state secrets\u2019 privilege, insisting that entire cases could be exempt from judicial review at the outset if they touch on national security. They seek to use the narrow, evidentiary scalpel like a chainsaw, to deny justice for millions of ordinary Americans for rampant violations of their rights\u2026.<\/em><\/p>\n

Under this theory, the government could potentially violate the law and Constitution as it sees fit, and\u2014just by stamping \u2018STATE SECRET\u2019 on the top of their actions\u2014those injured by their actions would be denied justice.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

A Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel once described the argument as such:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018According to the government\u2019s theory, the Judiciary should effectively cordon off all secret government actions from judicial scrutiny, immunizing the CIA and its partners from the demands and limits of the law.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This unaccountable system of secrecy has been evolving since the 1940s. Here\u2019s how President Kennedy described it in 1961:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a system which has conscripted vast human and material resources into the building of a tightly knit, highly efficient machine that combines military, diplomatic, intelligence, economic, scientific and political operations.<\/em><\/p>\n

Its preparations are concealed, not published. Its mistakes are buried, not headlined. Its dissenters are silenced, not praised.<\/em><\/p>\n

No expenditure is questioned, no rumor is printed, no secret is revealed\u2026.<\/em><\/p>\n

If you are awaiting a finding of \u2018clear and present danger,\u2019 then I can only say that the danger has never been more clear and its presence has never been more imminent.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

To Read the complete document, click here<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

**********************<\/p>\n

Exhibit A: 26 Inspector General Reports Revealing $21 Trillion in Unaccounted for Taxpayer Funding<\/strong><\/p>\n

The United States Department of Defense (DoD) Inspector General (IG) is an independent agency that provides oversight of DoD programs and operations.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe office\u2019s mission is to promote integrity, accountability and improvement of Department of Defense personnel, programs and operations to support the Department\u2019s mission and serve the public interest.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The IG \u201ccombats fraud, waste and abuse in the Department of Defense by conducting audits, investigations and evaluations.\u201d<\/p>\n

IG Report 1 of 26: $6.5 Trillion Unaccounted for, Army General Fund<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

EXHIBIT B: DFAS Statements, Accounting Fraud as DoD Standard Operating Procedure<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) \u2014 referenced in EXHIBIT A Inspector General Report #1 \u2014 is the Pentagon\u2019s main accounting agency. It is the world\u2019s largest finance and accounting operation.<\/p>\n

As a Reuters Investigation revealed, Linda Woodford, while working at DFAS, \u201cspent the last 15 years of her career inserting phony numbers in the U.S. Department of Defense\u2019s accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNumbers were missing. Numbers were clearly wrong. Numbers came with no explanation of how the money had been spent or which congressional appropriation it came from. Woodford says, \u2018We didn\u2019t have the detail\u2026 for a lot of it.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWoodford and her colleagues were told by superiors to take \u2018unsubstantiated change actions\u2019 \u2013 in other words, enter false numbers, commonly called \u2018plugs,\u2019 to make the totals match the Treasury\u2019s.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cJeff Yokel, who spent 17 years in senior positions in DFAS\u2019s Cleveland office before retiring, says supervisors were required to approve every \u2018plug\u2019 \u2013 thousands a month.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

DoD Standard Operating Procedure<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAt the DFAS offices that handle accounting for the Army, Navy, Air Force and other defense agencies, fudging the accounts with false entries is standard operating procedure, Reuters has found.<\/em><\/p>\n

And plugging isn\u2019t confined to DFAS. Former military service officials say record-keeping at the operational level throughout the services is rife with made-up numbers to cover lost or missing information.<\/em><\/p>\n

A review of multiple reports from oversight agencies in recent years shows that the Pentagon also has systematically ignored warnings about its accounting practices.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018These types of adjustments, made without supporting documentation\u2026 mask much larger problems in the original accounting data,\u2019 the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, said.<\/em><\/p>\n

Plugs also are symptomatic of one very large problem: the Pentagon\u2019s chronic failure to keep track of its money \u2013 how much it has, how much it pays out and how much is wasted or stolen.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

EXHIBIT C: Congressional Statements on Accounting Crisis at the Pentagon<\/strong><\/p>\n

As Judiciary Committee Chairman Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said in a recent speech on the United States Senate floor:<\/p>\n

\u201cA monster is lurking in the weeds. And nobody wants to talk about it\u2026. They are red flag accounting issues listed in DoD reports for years\u2026. 26-years of hard-core foot-dragging shows that internal resistance to auditing the books runs deep.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Former Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), who sponsored the\u00a0Audit the Pentagon Act<\/em>\u00a0of 2012, one of many failed and\/or ignored attempts to bring accountability, summed up the situation by saying:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Pentagon can\u2019t manage what it can\u2019t measure, and Congress can\u2019t effectively perform its Constitutional oversight role if it doesn\u2019t know how the Pentagon is spending taxpayer dollars.<\/em><\/p>\n

Until the Pentagon produces a viable financial audit, it won\u2019t be able to effectively prioritize its spending, and it will continue to violate the Constitution and put our National Security at risk.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee and a sponsor of the most recent Audit the Pentagon Act of 2015, recently stated:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Senate voted to increase military spending\u2026. I was one of only eight members of the Senate who voted \u2018No\u2019 on this bill. Why? One of the reasons was because we don\u2019t know where this money goes since the Pentagon has never had an audit.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) didn\u2019t pull any punches either:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is disgraceful that Congress has poured trillions upon trillions of taxpayer dollars into an agency that refuses even the most basic measure of accountability.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Subcommittee Chairman on Federal Spending Oversight Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) recently expressed his frustration with the Pentagon\u2019s accounting crisis by saying:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe department charged with carrying out our greatest constitutional responsibility has set the lowest possible standard for accountability.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

To Read the complete document, click here<\/a><\/h3>\n

______________________________________________<\/p>\n

The original source of this article is<\/em> Changemaker Media<\/a><\/p>\n

Copyright \u00a9 David DeGraw<\/a>, Changemaker Media<\/a>, 2018<\/em><\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 globalresearch.ca<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

25 Apr 2018 – According to US government documents, since 1998, the Office of the Inspector General has reported on $21 Trillion in unaccounted for taxpayer money. As unbelievable and absurd as that sounds, the actual total of unaccounted money at the Pentagon is most likely significantly more than $21 trillion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":111732,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-111730","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anglo-america"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111730","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=111730"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111730\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/111732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=111730"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=111730"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=111730"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}