The federal government spent $97 billion in a single month last year — almost two-thirds of it, $61 billion, attributed to the Pentagon, Military Times reported.
In an accounting by OpenTheBooks, a nonprofit aimed at bringing transparency and efficiency to the federal budget, recounted the so-called end of the year "use it or lose it" spending, the military news outlet reported.
The military spent the most — by far, the nonprofit's founder and CEO Adam Andrzejewski told Military Times.
"Let me be clear: Congress is the problem here, not DoD or other agencies," he told Military Times. "Historically, both parties tend to look the other way at Pentagon waste. This is a shame because the troops and taxpayers suffer. Lower priority items get funded while mission critical needs are short-changed."
Included in the stand-out purchases by the Pentagon was a $9,341 Wexford leather club chair purchased from the Interior Resource Group; $32 million worth of batteries, $4.3 million worth of books and pamphlets, $220 million worth of furniture, $7.6 million worth of workout equipment and $786.3 million spent on "guns, ammunition and bombs."
The Pentagon spent the most on five of those products: $124.3 million on medium caliber ammunition, $92.3 million for modification purposes, $75 million on the Paveway family of laser-guided bombs, nearly $54 million on M795 TNT, and $2.8 million on 40mm ammunition systems, Military Times reported.
Then there is food spending: The Pentagon spent $2.3 million on crab, including snow crab, Alaskan king crab, and crab legs and claws, as well as another $2.3 million on lobster tail, Military Times reported.
Some congressional leaders have shown an interest in reigning in this type of end-of-the-year spending, "but we need more," Andrzejewski told Military Times.
"Sens. Rand Paul [R-Ky.], Mark Warner [D-Va.] and Joni Ernst [R-Iowa] understand Congress needs to make structural reforms to get this problem under control," he added.
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