Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2014

Floor Speech

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Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Chairman, we've had a lot of discussion here in the last several minutes about Afghanistan. This amendment follows along the same line, but it's actually far greater in dollars.

Last year, we appropriated $5.1 billion to the Afghanistan National Army for their support. In this year's budget, an additional $2.6 billion was added for--who knows what? It was $2.6 billion of American taxpayer money for something--airplanes? supplies? support equipment? trucks? It was unspecified, unknown, to be used by one of the most corrupt governments--no, excuse me--the most corrupt government in the world. $2.6 billion of American taxpayer money for something, unspecified, to be used somewhere, somehow--I suspect, more likely, in some bank account in Bahrain.

What are we doing? What justification is there for $2.6 billion of additional expenditure for the Afghan National Army? Have we lost our minds? No. We're just going to lose our money. What is going on here? What are we doing? What is this all about?

This money should never be spent for some unspecified purpose. We take our Department of Defense, and we hold them to a very tight account. We don't let them spend money without a contract, without reviews by the inspector general, without reviews by our committee, but here is $2.6 billion, unspecified.

Oh, Mr. Karzai, use it wisely.

Come on. Come on. Let's not do this. This amendment would simply say, You can't have that money.

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Mr. GARAMENDI. I find it difficult that our esteemed Appropriations Committee, which watches the taxpayers' money with such ardor and intensity, would increase by 51 percent the amount of support that the American taxpayers are giving to the Afghan National Security Forces--the police, which are among--no, excuse me--they are the most corrupt--and the army, which is questionable, and certainly the government, which we know to be the most corrupt in the world--that it would simply write $2.6 billion more money than we were giving them last year, for a total of $7.6 billion, for something--something--unspecified.

We would never do this for our own military. Never would we do that. We would have them lay out how they were going to spend the money before we would even consider giving them the money, and then we would hold them to tight account.

I cannot understand why we would do this. There is no justification other than, oh, we're leaving, and we've got to help them, so throw some more money at them. They already have been appropriated $52 billion, and only $40 billion of that has been spent. There is $12 billion left in the account, and you're going to add $7.6 billion to that.

What are you doing? What justification is there for this other than, oh, they may need it because we're leaving? They're going to use it for--let's see--other things--well, maybe for some field hospitals, maybe for some airplanes, maybe for some supplies--maybe, maybe, maybe--but there is nothing written. There is nothing written. Oh, yes. We know the American Army or the American military will somehow spend it wisely. There is a 10-year record of its being spent unwisely. $2.6 billion.

What could we do with it? Could we reduce the deficit? Could we build some levees? Could we educate some kids? Could we do some research in the United States?

Come on. Of all of the things we're doing here today, this is the most disgusting.

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