Government watchdog Open the Books revealed that the Pentagon under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth spent $93 billion in September 2025 alone — the highest monthly spending since 2008 — in a massive 'use-it-or-lose-it' year-end spending spree.
The luxury purchases included $2 million for Alaskan king crab, $6.9 million for lobster tail, $15.1 million for ribeye steak, a $98,329 Steinway & Sons grand piano for the Air Force chief of staff's residence, $225 million in furniture (including $12,000 on fruit basket stands and $60,000+ on Herman Miller recliners), $5.3 million for Apple devices, $124,000 for ice cream machines, and $139,224 on 272 orders of doughnuts.
In the final five days of September alone, the Pentagon spent $50.1 billion on grants and contracts — more than the entire defense budgets of nine countries, and more than Canada and Mexico's military budgets combined.
The hypocrisy is staggering. This spending binge occurred under the same administration that created DOGE to slash 'government waste,' fired hundreds of thousands of federal workers, cut SNAP benefits for millions of Americans, and shut down the government in the longest shutdown in US history — all in the name of fiscal responsibility. Apparently $2 million in king crab for the Pentagon is essential spending, but food assistance for struggling families is 'waste.'