Weekly Spotlight: Supply Chain Scrutiny
Following our investigation, two senators are demanding answers about how Russian crude oil ended up in the Pentagon’s supply chain.
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A few weeks ago, we published an investigation revealing that the Pentagon is contracting with an oil giant that is importing Russian crude, allowing Russian oil to enter U.S. supply chains despite the federal bans meant to prevent its import.
Now, two senators — Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) — are calling on the Pentagon to stem the flow. In a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, they cited our investigation and a related investigation by the Washington Post demanding that Austin answer their questions on how the Pentagon plans to address the findings and how they’ll prevent Russian crude from entering their supply chains in the future.
In their letter, the senators note that the Pentagon is one of the world’s largest commercial purchasers of fuel oil, so it’s especially crucial that they be vigilant about what oil they’re purchasing. We’re glad to see that POGO’s findings are being used to hold the Pentagon accountable.
LETTER
POGO and NTU Call on Congress to Improve Spending Transparency
We urge Speaker Johnson to improve transparency in federal spending.
OP-ED
Pentagon can't account for 63% of nearly $4 trillion in assets
The Department of Defense regularly buys parts and equipment it doesn’t need because it can’t keep track of the parts and equipment it already owns.
ICYMI
Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette, Senior Government Affairs Manager at POGO, was named one of The Hill’s top lobbyists of 2023. Congratulations, Dylan!
ONE LINERS
“Most people would be concerned if Bank of America, Chase, any of these large companies were funding staffers that worked on the Banking Committee. Having staffers work in offices producing legislation that — directly or indirectly — benefits the companies or industry funding those staffers is a conflict of interest.”
Tim Stretton, Director of the Congressional Oversight Initiative, in Politico
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