By Adam Allington, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Missouri's new U.S. Senator, Claire McCaskill, says fighting Defense Department waste will be one of her first priorities in Washington. She now sits on the Senate Armed Service Committee.
Last week the committee received an internal report from the Pentagon's Inspector General. "I don't know whether to laugh or cry," was McCaskill's response. The report accused the DoD of frequent violations in federal procurement and oversight laws.
"I know how frustrating it is as an auditor when you can't get the policy makers attention," McCaskill said, in an interview. "You know the law is there and if we don't believe in that law then we should repeal the law. But the law says if the violations are willful, it's criminal."
McCaskill says she plans on working with the DoD and General Accounting Office to single out the worst violators and hopefully prosecuting them.
McCaskill says she'd like to prosecute the worst violators under federal laws that already exist.
Before going to Washington, McCaskill spent eight years as Missouri state auditor.