Study suggests Pentagon reliance on contractors hurt U.S. post-9/11 wars

Study Suggests Pentagon, Reliance on Contractors, Hurt U.S. Post-9/11 Wars.ABC reports that a new study suggests that up to half of the $14 trillion spent by the Pentagon since 9/11 went to for-profit defense contractors.The study by Brown University’s Costs of War project and the Center for International Policy also points to the dependence on contractors as contributing to mission failures in Afghanistan.William Hartung, the author of the study, and others say it is essential that Americans examine what role the reliance on private contractors played in the post-9/11 wars.According to the study, up to one-third of the Pentagon contracts went to five weapons suppliers.Lockheed Martin alone received 1.5 times the entire budgets of the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development through Pentagon contracts. .Lockheed Martin alone received 1.5 times the entire budgets of the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development through Pentagon contracts. .By 2008, Halliburton had received over $30 billion to help set up and run bases, feed troops and carry out other work in Iraq and Afghanistan.By 2008, Halliburton had received over $30 billion to help set up and run bases, feed troops and carry out other work in Iraq and Afghanistan.If it were only the money, that would be outrageous enough. But the factit undermined the mission and put troops at risk is even more outrageous, William Hartung, study author, via ABC.Another Costs of War study estimates that the U.S. saw about 7,000 military members die in all post-9/11 conflicts, compared with nearly 8,000 contractor deaths.Another Costs of War study estimates that the U.S. saw about 7,000 military members die in all post-9/11 conflicts, compared with nearly 8,000 contractor deaths.According to ABC, following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the U.S. embraced private contractors as an essential part of the military response.According to ABC, following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the U.S. embraced private contractors as an essential part of the military response