PPI - Radically Pragmatic
  • Donate
Skip to content
  • Home
  • About
    • About Us
    • Locations
    • Careers
  • People
  • Projects
  • Our Work
  • Events
  • Donate

Our Work

The Defense Budget Sleight of Hand That’s Costing You Billions

  • February 10, 2011
  • Jim Arkedis

Look, I get it. If you’re not a budget wonk, I can understand how you might not care about this stuff. But if you’re a progressive and you’re concerned about the Tea Party destroying the EPA for no good reason, then that’s reason to pay attention.

I’ve written a policy memo about something else that is crucial to understand if we want to even the discussion of getting Defense spending under control: it’s simply vital that we end the practice of supplemental war funding bills.

Wait! Wait! Don’t fall asleep. Seriously. We’ve wasted $200 billion over the last ten years through a little-discussed system of back-door Pentagon budgeting, which essentially funds the stuff on DoD’s wish list by falsely calling them “emergency war necessities.” Why, for example, did Congress give Don Rumsfeld an $11 billion slush fund to spend as he pleases without any Congressional oversight?

We have to end this systematic abuse of your taxpayer dollars — start reading here to find out how.

Read the policy memo

Related Work

Press Release  |  May 22, 2026

In America’s 250th Year: Three Young Americans Redefine What It Means to be an American

  • Richard D. Kahlenberg Colin Mortimer
Op-Ed  |  May 22, 2026

Marshall for The Hill: As Politics Fragments, the Worldwide Center-Left Must Rally

  • Will Marshall
Press Release  |  May 19, 2026

New PPI Report Shows Algorithmic Pricing as Path to Variety, Affordability, and Less Waste

  • Michael Mandel
In the News  |  May 19, 2026

Marshall and Kahlenberg in The New York Times: Is There a Door No. 3 for Democrats?

  • Will Marshall Richard D. Kahlenberg
Publication  |  May 19, 2026

Algorithmic Pricing, Increased Variety, and Less Waste: The Much-Awaited End to the One-Size-Fits-All Economy

  • Michael Mandel
Op-Ed  |  May 13, 2026

Kahlenberg for The Atlantic: The Democrats Can’t Let Go of Racial Preferences

  • Richard D. Kahlenberg
  • Never miss an update:

  • Subscribe to our newsletter
PPI Logo
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Donate
  • Careers
  • © 2026 Progressive Policy Institute. All Rights Reserved.
  • |
  • Privacy Policy
  • |
  • Privacy Settings