Solano Sun

John Garamendi, a U.S. Congressman representing California's 8th district since 2009, has been vocal about issues related to defense spending and taxpayer money. Through a series of tweets on February 7, 2025, he highlighted concerns over financial practices involving defense contractors and military expenditures.

In a tweet posted on February 7, 2025, Garamendi criticized defense companies for excessive spending of U.S. taxpayer money compared to USAID. He cited an example where Boeing charged the Department of Defense $4,000 for soap dispensers used in Air Force planes, noting it as an "8,000%" markup. "Meanwhile, defense companies have wasted far more US taxpayer money than USAID ever could. For example, Boeing charged DoD $4,000 for soap dispensers on Air Force planes, a markup of 8,000%."

In another tweet from the same day, Garamendi referenced a transaction from 2020 where the Pentagon paid Boeing over $200,000 for four trash cans. He suggested this was indicative of broader issues with military waste. "In 2020, the Pentagon paid Boeing over $200,000 for four of the trash cans – and this is just the beginning of the military’s waste."

Garamendi also discussed his legislative efforts to curb such financial practices in Congress. He mentioned his collaboration with Senator Elizabeth Warren in introducing the Bicameral Stop Price Gouging the Military Act in 2022. This legislation aims to prevent price gouging by military contractors. "Part of work I do in Congress is saving taxpayers money. In 2022, I along with @SenWarren introduced the Bicameral Stop Price Gouging the Military Act. Which prevents price gouging by military contractors."