In the 1970s, I studied defense policy at M.I.T. but became disillusioned. One of the recent graduates, then working in the Senate, described how large amounts of quantitative research would be set aside by politicians who focused on spending that benefit their particular constituents. The archetypal current case would be Senator Bernie Sanders, who rails against the military-industrial complex, but supports weapons systems that bring jobs to Vermont, such as the F-35.
