In light of the increasing poverty in America, homeless veterans, Vets that just returned from Iraq and can’t get health care because the “Support our Troops” Republicans keep cutting their health care… these hypocrites are sick. BellaCiao

The Defense Department paid contractors $8 billion over five years in bonuses on weapons programs that were often dogged by severe cost overruns, performance problems and delays, the Government Accountability Office said.

The agency, an independent auditor for Congress, reviewed 93 of 597 military contracts in force between 1999 and 2004 that included the possibility of a bonus. Contractors on average were awarded about 90 percent of the bonus money available, the agency said in the draft of a report it sent to the Pentagon and plans to release next week.

For example, Lockheed Martin and Boeing, the two largest defense contractors, received $1.7 billion, or about 91 percent of $1.847 billion available on four major programs, including the Joint Strike Fighter, even as these programs “experienced significant cost increases, technical problems and development delays,” the draft said.

And this $8 Billion in bonuses is only for 93 out of 597 contracts- at that rate there could be another $40 Billion in bonuses the Pentagon auditor hasn’t reviewed yet. We only know about this because two Senators

asked the agency to review the bonus system after senior defense officials complained that the awards are paid regardless of performance.

There are homeless veterans in America, yet our gov’t is giving Billions of dollars in bonuses to the military-industrial complex, “regardless of performance”. Just like the tax cuts- billions to the rich while most of America suffers. Are these the actions of noble leaders, or con-men?