Should discretionary spending by military officers be scrutinized?

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"As Congress returns to Washington to begin work on deficit reduction, lawmakers would be well-served to look carefully at the White House request for $1.3 billion for quality-of-life projects in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Washington Post offers an assessment today of the Commander's Emergency Response Program, which is championed by Gen. David Petraeus and is the little-regulated source of $5 billion for "goodwill" projects in the two countries over the past six years..."

http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/01/hold-that-13-bi.html


..."In the spring of 2008, Gen. David H. Petraeus decided he had spent enough time gazing from his helicopter at an empty and desolate lake on the banks of the Tigris River.

He ordered the lake refilled and turned into a water park....

...today the Baghdad park is nearly waterless, more than two years after a U.S. military inauguration ceremony that included a marching band and water-scooter rides.

Much of the compound is in ruins, swing sets have become piles of twisted steel, and the personal watercraft's engines have been gutted for spare parts.

The troubled history of the venture speaks to the limitations and mishandling of a program that has provided U.S. military commanders with $5 billion for projects in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past six years.

The program has given officers enormous flexibility to address urgent needs with few bureaucratic hassles.

But in many cases, such as that of the Jadriyah Lake park, the investments under the plan, known as the Commander's Emergency Response Program, have created no more than a temporary illusion of progress.

They have also shown a lack of U.S. foresight...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/02/AR2011010202491.html?hpid=topnews
 
Discretionary spending by military officers IS scrutinized. No "goodwill" project goes forth without a LOT of scrutiny at various levels of the chain of command.

That does not mean those holding them up to scrutiny cannot make mistakes when appraising the value and long term effect of "goodwill" projects.
 
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