Eisenhower warned of the constantly growing Military Industrial Complex in his farewell address. Unfortunately, that warning fell on deaf ears. The United States now has over 900 military bases around the globe and we are set to see the first Trillion Dollar military budget. All of this spending exploded while the Pentagon failed 7 consecutive audits in a row. We have also been involved in regime change wars for decades to install leaders friendly to US business interests. We are trying to dominate by force rather than diplomacy and building relationships. Congress must rein in the power of the President by reasserting their authority under the War Powers Act.

The amount of money we spend on war expansion is beyond comprehension. Worse yet is the waste of tax dollars that could go to programs that benefit Americans. Regardless of where you stand on where the money is being spent, we can all agree there should be someone looking over the money to ensure it isn’t wasted or stolen. That is the job of an Inspector General. There was no Inspector General assigned to watch the now \$170 billion we have sent to Ukraine. It would only take a fraction of that (roughly \$21 billion per year) to provide free school lunches for all American students.

We spent trillions on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with billions of this money lost to corruption, and what do we have to show for it in the end? In many cases, the money we spend prolongs wars and stands in the way of peace. Our refusal to limit spending on weapons to Israel has created a sense of impunity that has led to more destruction, attacks on other countries in the Middle East, and a refusal to end the conflict. We have the money to build a better society, but we are just wasting it on war.