War for Profit

This is a first-person account of the LOGCAP contract in Iraq and Afghanistan, written by the civilian who was in charge from 2002 to 2004. The book reveals Defense procurement issues in contracting and logistics that undermined US servicemen and women while needlessly throwing away public funds. It provides facts and analysis to inform the public and to bolster the many loyal and hard-working government officials and employees who seek to do the job right. By providing a first-person narrative of the author’s actions and experiences, the book is also aimed at a more general audience of those who wish to understand our participation in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The author also intends to provide information and analysis concerning the workings of government agencies and Congress, of interest to those who work in government policy. No other such account has been published. The first chapter sets the scene, laying out the background of the author’s career and work on behalf of US military efforts, especially in Iraq. Subsequent chapters illustrate specific issues in contractor relations that resulted in unsafe conditions for the troops and blew millions of taxpayer dollars. The author speaks with first-hand knowledge of KBR problems with transportation, electricity, food and water. Employees who tried to keep things on track were turned away and those who sought to rein in the free-for-all were sacked. Some of these issues have had considerable press attention over the course of the war, but press releases cannot convey the sense of conflict as responsible citizens struggled to provide the right services in an environment that was set up against them. Other chapters are analytic and provide information about, and evaluation of, Army logistics, Congressional oversight and whether letting contracts for this kind of support is appropriate at all. These chapters discuss the kind of problems that interest military policy leaders, defense analysts, public policy analysts and scholars in these areas.