It should surprise no one that TARP money has apparently been wasted or stolen: [Thanks T.M.!]
WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) — The top cop tracking the government’s $700 billion bailout program said Tuesday that he has opened 20 criminal investigations and six audits into whether tax dollars are being pilfered or wasted.
Neil Barofsky, the special inspector general overseeing the Troubled Asset Relief Program, released a 250-page report detailing a long list of concerns about government efforts to prop up hundreds of banks, Wall Street firms and auto companies.
Barofsky, whose investigations could lead to criminal charges, told CNNMoney.com in an interview that he wants taxpayers to understand where their money is going. At the same time, he wants to alert officials to weaknesses in TARP that could invite corruption or fraud.
Here’s more "shocking" news:
The report reveals that Barofsky is looking into whether bailout decisions were influenced by those who stood to benefit from them and whether companies receiving bailout dollars are adhering to caps on executive pay.
Barofsky’s report also makes several recommendations to Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and other officials charged with implementing the bailout. Among them: Require all TARP recipients to detail how they use bailout dollars and safeguard a new mortgage rescue effort against scams.
It would have been nice if those recommendations had been part of TARP in the first place, wouldn’t it?
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Update: Here’s Barofsky appearing on CNN:
Twist,
Government has known for more than 30 years that Social Security and Medicare would fail mathematically in 2041 and 2017 respectfully.
In that 30 years they have failed to find a solution. It it not surprising then, that decisions and documents arrived at and written over a week-end would. . .let’s say…lack clarity.
I find it more shocking that someone up there actually noticed and opened investigations.
You’re giving billions to groups of people who have been stealing money for years (huge bonuses for bankrupting a company = stealing in my book), it’s not rocket science.
Weaknesses that invite fraud in?, it’s already one big scam
MtnMike-
I had thought the same thing. Then I realized that given the length of the legislation, they’d been working on it for awhile- it just got shoved through in a weekend. I suspect that might be the basis for the corruption charges.
Linenoise-
You have to have the investigations to look “tough on crime”. I wouldn’t be surprised [ I got it right this time John! : )] if they make a ruckus, arrest some Martha Stewart type and that’s the end of it. It’s hard to believe that anyone of any significance would ever be charged.