Rand Paul Exposes $52 Billion in Government Waste
by Will
The pandemic of government waste is as bad as ever, if not worse. In fact, as Rand Paul hinted at in a hilarious, Festivus-themed Twitter post, the problem of the government’s proclivity to spend wastefully is a terrible one:
Later, Paul released what he called the “Festivus Report,” a document that details the most egregious examples of government spending over the past year.
This year’s Festivus Report details over $52 billion in wasteful spending, $52,598,515,585 to be exact. Here are the areas of waste he lists:
• Foreign countries use our aircraft for free for 4 years (DOD)..……………….…$773,000,000
• US bought Afghanistan planes that were later thrown away (DOD)…………….$549,000,000
• US-constructed buildings in Afghanistan left sitting unused (DOD) …………$2,400,000,000
• COVID relief grant for NYC to display art projects across the city………………$25,000,000
• Ineligible and duplicate PPP loans (SBA)…………………………………….$4,290,000,000
• Improper CARES Act unemployment insurance payments…………………$36,000,000,000
• Constructing border walls in the Middle East and North Africa (DOD)………..$250,000,000
• Free trips for Korean kids to visit D.C. (USAID)…………………………………… $150,000
• Grinding up ferrets to develop COVID and flu vaccines………………..………..$4,500,000
• Tax Credit incentivizing CA residents to uninstall fireplaces………………….….$2,100,000
• Translating books into the Georgian language (State)…………………………. ……$182,741
• Teaching French people about US culture (State)…………………………………..$200,000
• Giving irrigation systems to Afghan farmers left unused (USAID)…………..… $88,000,000
• Developing a film about dinosaurs to inspire middle schoolers (NSF)………..…. $2,500,000
• Pigeons playing slot machines (NIH)………………………………………………..$465,339
• Telling people to not burn their trash (USAID)………………………..………..$11,300,000
• Funding Green Energy programs in Africa (State)………………………………$179,000,000
• DC Metro paid Lyft to subsidize riders……………………………..……………….$28,005
• Attempting to replace an assault vehicle over 2 decades (DOD)……………. $3,400,000,000
• Funding the Wilson Center to put on parties for Congressmen…………………$14,000,000
• Study verified that hearing bad news decreases happiness levels (NIA)……………$1,300,000
• Planting trees in New York City………………………………………..……….$400,000,000
• Government paid for students who didn’t actually attend those schools……….…$2,100,000
• Kids crave junk food and gain weight if they’re exposed to it (NIDDK)….…………$352,000
• Getting high schoolers excited about being airplane pilots (FAA)…………………$5,000,000
• Fattening eels for human consumption (FDA)……………………….………….…..$337,500
• Social Security overpayments to beneficiaries in Fiscal Year 2019 (SSA)………$4,200,000,000
Notable on that list are the $36 billion dollars wasted on improper unemployment insurance payments, $179 million on green energy programs in Africa, $4.2 billion on Social Security overpayments, $3.4 billion on spending two decades trying to find a new “assault vehicle,” and $88 million on unused irrigation aid in Afghanistan.
more
https://trendingpolitics.com/rand-paul-exposes-52-billion-in-government-waste/
