Posted by
bob's my uncle on Friday, February 20, 2009 6:47:37 PM
President Barack Obama recently told a meeting of mayors who were in Washington to see what kind of stimulus money they might be getting:
"So I want to be clear about this: We cannot tolerate business as usual, not in Washington, not in our state capitals, not in America's cities and towns. We will use the new tools that the recovery act gives us to watch the taxpayers' money with more rigor and transparency than ever.
If a federal agency proposes a project that will waste that money, I will not hesitate to call them out on it and put a stop to it. I want everybody here to be on notice that, if a local government does the same, I will call them out on it and use the full power of my office and our administration to stop it. "
In these words I hear an ominous warning and a portent of things to come. The Federal Government is "giving out" hundreds of billions of dollars in cash to state and municipal governments in order to "stimulate" the economy.
Here is a question. When in history, has there been a pile of money of any size, controlled by politicians, that the disposition of it has not been fraught with fraud and waste?
The words of the President are ominous in that he is now the chief law enforcement officer and controls the prosecutorial division of the government. He can and will control who will be prosecuted for fraud and waste in spending this vast amount of money. I expect massive fraud and waste in the distribution of this money. There will be so much opportunity to buy favors and bribe elected representatives. It's impossible to expect anything less. After all ACORN is getting some $3-4 billion that they can use for their own brand of fraud.
I also expect an unequal distribution of legal prosecutions toward those who do not or have not supported this President and his policies. Any who have spoken against him will be first.
Am I wrong?