He was the first leader of US Africa Command, one of only six commands. Prior to his selection in 2007, he had an exemplary Army record. He's worked all over the world at a wide variety of tasks and he must have done a good job to be picked as commander of Africom. However, while he was in charge of Africom he went wild spending money, far above his budget. Here are some of his 'excursions' according to the Daily Mail:
- $129,000 on an 11-day trip to Washington with his wife and 13 staff where he only had short engagements on the first three days of the trip. The cost covers the hotel and 'other' costs such as transportation
- $10,000 on hotels rooms for himself and staff during a 'refueling stop' in Bermuda on the way to an engagement in Germany. He and his wife stayed in a $750 suite. The bill does not include transport or other costs
- $18,500 on producing and publishing 2,000 books about the Command's plush residence in Germany and its first three years of work
- One staffer stayed in the Ritz Carlton Hotel in McLean, Virginia for 49 consecutive nights in early 2010 - even though Ward was in the area for just 18 of the nights
- Use of government-rented vehicles to run errands including collecting flowers, books, football game tickets and snacks
- Dinner and a Broadway show - paid for by a government contractor - before meeting Denzel Washington and staying in the five-star Waldorf Astoria HotelWife joined him on 52 of his 79 trips even though she had no official capacity
- Ward also set officials meetings after being refused the use of military aircraft for personal travel.
He was a 4-star general. He no longer is.
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