The report, "Homeland Security for Sale," was published last week by the non-profit watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

It recaps government and news media investigations into departmental contracts and programs worth billions of dollars -- including the Coast Guard's troubled Deepwater modernization program and U.S. Customs and Border Protection's virtual border fence called SBINet, or Secure Border Initiative Network.

The report also examines the business dealings of former Homeland Security officials now working for companies seeking to gain government contracts in the intelligence and defense fields, as well as with the department.

"Billions have been spent on projects to secure our borders and to inspect port cargo," reads the report, charging the projects "have been delayed and the contractors have overcharged, all under the less than watchful eye of DHS political appointees."

"The stories about the agency would be comical if only our national security were not at stake," conclude the authors.