Navy says its wasted $4 billion on continuing resolutions since 2011

[IronLionZion]

https://federalnewsradio.com/defense-main/2017/12/navy-says-its-wasted-4-billion-on-continuing-resolutions-since-2011/

Congress’ seemingly unbreakable habit of running the government via a series of continuing resolutions, rather than full-year appropriations bills, has caused the U.S. Navy to waste $4 billion since 2011, officials said Monday.

Service leaders disclosed the estimate just four days before the expiration of the current continuing resolution, expressing a degree of exasperation that it remains unclear exactly how — or if — the government will be funded for the remainder of 2018. They argued that as much as the sea service believes it needs additional funding in order to carry out the full scope of its missions, receiving what funds it does get in a stable, predictable way is even more crucial.

“We have put $4 billion in a trash can, poured lighter fluid on it, and burned it,” Navy Secretary Richard Spencer said in remarks at a U.S. Naval Institute forum in Washington. “Four billion is enough to buy a squadron of F-35s, two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, 3,000 Harpoon missiles. It’s enough money to buy us additional capacity that we need. Instead, it’s lost, because of inefficacy in the ways of the continuing resolution.”

Although the Defense Department has faced fewer continuing resolutions than domestic agencies have in recent decades, it has still spent at least part of each of the past 10 years under a CR. Because of that, Navy managers have become somewhat adept at navigating their way through the stopgap funding measures.

The continuing resolution funding the government ends this Friday at midnight. Literally making America a hell of a lot less great due to instability. Leaving us vulnerable to respond to anyone coming at us due to Dolt 45's provocative mouth.

But at least our wealthy can look forward to some major tax cuts!

[Turbineguy]

1. Republican governance.

[Pope George Ringo II]

2. I don't want to say the military's hands are completely clean (Hello, Fat Leonard!)

But so many times we get so caught up in the waste and loss the Pentagon is genuinely responsible for that we overlook the waste and loss that Congress inflicts on the military budget over professional objections.

[Fred Sanders]

3. Casting bricks from the Mother of all Waste House, the bloated military. Also rather than 2 more

destroyers not needed, how about funding CHIP with those billions?

The bloated military always gets a pass...not surprising in country where millions of citizens are forced to salute the national flag while a national anthem of war plays....many times a day everyday. And where all manner of sporting and events salute the military are secretly paid for by the military.

[NCjack]

4. This crap of Congress authorizing spending and then acting tough on paying bills

is a Republican publicity stunt. If bills aren't paid on time, the cost of credit goes up. No one likes loaning to dead-beats. Congress had in place a system in which the authorization of the budget was immediately followed by an authorized continuing resolution, if needed. Newt Gingrich destroyed that when he became House Speaker. Thanks to the post-Newt Republicans, CRs are now voted on when authorized budget is spent to almost exhaustion. That has made budget management a 1000 times more cumbersome. The result was to make Department planning and spending a nightmare to meet unneeded spending milestones. It does a good job in frustrating government managers, but destroys operating effectiveness. Thanks Newt and GOP -- for really screwing things up. Now, a noice Republican president thinks the time is right for a government shutdown. Newt, the Repugs following him, and #45 have destroyed the GOP's reputation for good government management. There -- I have said it. In my memory, Nixon's Administration and the Congresses of that period were the best at managing budgets.