Losing Track: First Our Guns, Now Our Money

February 16, 2009

There are many things about which one can be outraged today, but this one is right up there near the top.

According to the Government Accountability Office, tens of thousands of assault rifles and other firearms in Afghanistan are at risk of being stolen because American officials have lost track of them. The concern is they will fall into the hands of the Taliban and could be used to shoot American soldiers

The GAO audit found that inventory controls were lacking for more than one-third of the 242,000 light weapons donated to Afghan forces by the United States – a stockpile that includes thousands of AK-47 assault rifles as well as mortars, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.

Adding to the outrage, the GAO said there are no reliable records showing what ultimately happened to an additional 135,000 weapons donate by other NATO countries.

How can this happen? Maybe Congress will investigate when it stops misspending our money.

Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C.