The Defense Department complains that such projects divert billions of dollars from programs the Pentagon considers vital.

Such an accord could significantly slow the nuclear arms race, which has diverted hundreds of billions of dollars from civilian needs and heightened the risk of nuclear warfare.

We were warned that a war would divert tens of billions of dollars from pressing problems at home.

Saddam Hussein diverted billions of dollars from the program with illicit oil sales, surcharges and bribes.

The oil tax would also be more efficient than an oil import fee, offering incentives for conservation without diverting billions into the production of high-cost domestic oil.

Consumers annually divert billions of dollars - to credit cards affiliated with the programs, or to goods and services tied to such plans - to obtain more miles.

The program also allowed Saddam Hussein to divert billions of dollars into his bank accounts.

It diverts billions from California's schools, hospitals and childcare centers by funding failed prison and policing policies, deepening the state's ongoing budget crisis.

The society said that groundless public fears about a possible link between power lines and cancer were diverting billions of dollars into mitigation work.

As fuel tax revenues dwindle, policymakers have had to divert billions from the general fund and other non-transportation funds to pay for infrastructure.