Pentagon Lied To Re-Enlist Soldiers, Thousands To Repay Bonuses

The US Military enticed many soldiers to re-enlist in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars by offering them cash bonuses of over $15,000. Now many years later, the Pentagon is asking thousands of veterans to pay back the “improper” bonuses that they accepted in good faith, because of mismanagement and corruption in the California National Guard. AntiMedia reports: Shortly after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the Pentagon hired Bell Pottinger, a London-based PR agency. The PR firm was tasked with promoting what the Pentagon called “democratic elections” in Iraq, ultimately earning over a hundred million dollars yearly. Part of the firm’s job included producing “fake al Qaeda propaganda films,” the Bureau of Investigative Journalism recently reported. Despite the PR operation’s hefty price tag, the Pentagon seemed to have no issue allocating taxpayer resources to have these videos produced. But over ten years after the Iraq invasion, the Pentagon is now concerned about its past appropriations — at least part of them, anyway. Ten years after promising $15,000 bonuses to soldiers willing to re-enlist in 2006 and 2007, the Pentagon is now forcing California veterans to pay the bonuses back. In California, the Los Angeles Times reports, “officials signed up soldiers in [...]

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