Report: Millions spent on unused TV trucks in Afghanistan --- A new government report reveals millions of dollars was spent on expensive TV production trucks sent to broadcast sporting events in Afghanistan out of the U.S. embassy in Kabul. -- The Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction released a letter it sent to Secretary of State John Kerry. -- The letter, obtained by the Cox Washington Bureau, details the original contract agreed to by the State Department to send six production trucks to Afghanistan totaling about $6 million. -- “Very few media companies have mobile television trucks,” said Tom Schatz, the President of Citizens Against Government Waste. “Sending mobile trucks to Afghanistan is an incredible waste of taxpayer money.” -- That was in August 2011. --- In September 2013, the contract was amended to three trucks adding up to $3.6 million. -- Those trucks did not arrive in Kabul until July 18, 2014, nearly three years after they were originally requested. -- One satellite and microwave truck and two Ford ES350 trucks ultimately arrived in Kabul and are now sitting unused. -- The cost of the trucks increased dramatically because of the changes in the original contract. --- According to SIGAR, the price of the Ford trucks went up from $157,300 to $568,062 each. -- The TV production truck was reduced by $200,000. --- “This is another example of bad contracting decisions by a federal agency, in this case the State Department,” said Schatz. “They did not hold the contractor to the original price. They simply paid more. They should have canceled the contract the minute it went a penny over the original cost.” -- SIGAR is now asking the State Department to answer questions to understand why it spent what it did on the vehicles and why it took so long to get them to Afghanistan. -- “It’s not essential to anything related to what we need to do to protect our country which is most of what we should be concerned about with anything related to Afghanistan,” said Schatz. -- The State Department spokesperson responded and said they will send the requested information in a timely manner. -- More, Dorey Scheimer - Cox Washington, http://www.whio.com/weblogs/news-cox-washington-bureau/2014/oct/24/report-millions-spent-unused-tv-trucks-afghanistan/