Two Critics Of Government Spending Are Forcing The Army To Build Tanks It Doesn’t Want

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/04/29/1932931/army-tanks-spending/

By Annie-Rose Strasser posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Apr 29, 2013

Congress is forcing the Army to spend nearly half a billion dollars building tanks that Army officials insist they don’t want, with money they say could be better spent elsewhere, according to a new report from the AP.

Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) are the two members of congress at the helm of the effort to spend $436 million on upgrading the Abrams tank, “a weapon the experts explicitly say is not needed.” The reason? Both represent Ohio, home to the nation’s only tank manufacturing plant, which would profit from the money.

The move is contradictory for the two politicians; both are also vocal advocates for fiscal austerity, and have made careers insisting that the government cut what they see as wasteful spending.

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