$28 Million wasted on military uniforms based on ‘fashion preference’

The government apparently wasted millions on a uniform pattern that won’t keep Afghan soldiers safe in the desert. Who was behind this decision, and why did our military think a green forest pattern would protect soldiers in a desert landscape? Doc Thompson and Kris Cruz broke down the story on Thursday’s “The Morning Blaze with Doc Thompson.”

The Pentagon wasted as much as $28 million on uniforms for the Afghan National Army that were made with a forest pattern instead of in camouflage that actually fits the country’s landscape, an inspector general report found.

The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction found that the Pentagon unnecessarily spent millions on the special proprietary pattern that would protect soldiers only while they are in around 2 percent of the country.

The pattern was chosen by the minister of defense based on “fashion preference,” said John F. Sopko, the special inspector general. He called it a “dumb decision” to pay extra for the pattern, which came from a Canadian company and included expensive detailing.

Changing the uniforms back could save the U.S. as much as $72.2 million over the next 10 years, according to the inspector general report.

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