U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08) served in some of the roughest places in the world as a member of the U.S. Marine Corps.
The Wisconsin Republican and Iraq War veteran said military life is challenging enough; U.S. troops should at least expect decent living conditions.
A new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) details the deplorable living conditions of some military members, forced to live in barracks bombarded by roaches and bed bugs, burst pipes, and even toxic waste. In some cases, service members have had to deal with squatters.
“Any American who serves our country does so knowing they won’t be staying at the Ritz, but they rightly expect a basic and safe standard of living. This GAO report reveals this is far from the case in many instances,” Gallagher said Wednesday following the report’s release.
U.S. military barracks house hundreds of thousands of service members. Many of them are subject to subpar living conditions, according to the GAO report, which examines how the Department of Defense is managing barracks.
“We found several health and safety risks,” states a GAO video detailing the concerns.
Among the more severe issues, service members have been subjected to exposed sewage, mold, broken or no heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and inoperable fire systems.
According to the 118-page report, GAO inspectors visited 12 military installations and interviewed service members. In some cases, they described unliveable conditions, from bed bugs and roach infiltrations to sweltering quarters, even broken windows and doors allowing squatters to occupy rooms.
“DOD doesn’t have reliable information about the condition of barracks or the effects on troop morale,” GAO notes.
Gallagher called the living conditions of America’s service members a “total disgrace.”
“While the Department of Defense takes pride in the well-maintained golf courses and new EV charging stations at its installations, it has turned a blind eye to the living conditions endured by servicemembers, which can include collapsing ceilings, mold and mildew, and even squatters raiding servicemembers’ personal possessions,” said Gallagher who served seven years on active duty in the United States Marine Corps, including two deployments to Iraq. He serves as chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation,
Gallagher said the situation warrants further investigation.
“Congress must implement more rigorous oversight into the Pentagon’s prioritizations and work to pass a defense appropriations bill that gives sufficient funding to improve servicemembers’ quality of life,” the veteran said.
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M.D. Kittle is the National Political Editor for The Star News Network.
Photo “Mike Gallagher” by Mike Gallagher. Background Photo “Military Barracks” by Scarlet Sappho. CC BY-SA 2.0.
