It’s the seedy underbelly of Washington, D.C. The hallways of Congress are often dark alleys of wasteful spending and pork-laden deal-making. Down these lanes, shadowy special interests and empire-building bureaucracies lie in wait to relieve innocent taxpayers of their hard-earned money. They spend billions on wasteful programs, pet projects, and the accumulation of personal power. They threaten to bankrupt our country as our national debt soars out of control.
The victims often don’t even know it’s happening. Many don’t realize how bad it is. Do you?
Take the following test to see if you can detect five of the dirty spending secrets Washington doesn’t want you to know . . .
Ready for the first secret? »
The Department of Agriculture recently tried to impose a new tax on Christmas trees. The revenues would have funded a program—and we’re not making this up—to boost the popularity of Christmas trees. Taxpayers also pay for the marketing and promotion of which other agricultural product through taxes and fees? (Choose one):
It’s all of the above—and many more including eggs, honey, mangos, and mushrooms. Leave it to Washington to impose “marketing assessments” like this. These programs cost growers and consumers money and skirt constitutional provisions that only Congress has the power to tax. And they also violate basic principles of free speech, making some producers—and the consumers who ultimately pony up the taxes—pay to communicate messages against their will.
Next dirty secret »
How much money did Washington recently spend to train Chinese prostitutes to drink more responsibly on the job? (Choose one.)
Incredibly, Washington is spending $2.6 million training Chinese prostitutes to drink more responsibly on the job. This is the kind of wasteful spending that President Obama and Congress have stubbornly refused to cut. Instead, they planned to raise taxes on families and entrepreneurs by trillions of dollars! Only action by citizens like you will break the Washington liberals of this kind of frivolous splurging.
Next dirty secret »
How much money do federal employees cost taxpayers each year upgrading their flights to business class?
Evidently the foot room is better! Federal employees cost taxpayers $146 million each year when they upgrade to business class flights. The Government Accountability Office found that more than half of these upgrades were not properly authorized. The rest of us have to fly coach and live on a budget—it’s time our government does the same.
Next dirty secret »
The United States government has spent $3 billion doing what to America’s beaches? (Choose one.)
The government has spent $3 billion to re-sand our nation’s beaches. Advocates claim this prevents erosion and keeps the beaches attractive to tourists. But the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the sand does nothing to prevent erosion—and this sand gets swept out to sea just as easily as existing sand! Regardless . . . taxpayers have shoveled out $3 billion for these projects.
Next dirty secret »
Which of the following were cited as the most wasteful government programs of 2011?
Trick question: You really can’t make this up! Congress continues to recklessly spend millions of taxpayer dollars at a time when we have federal budget deficits! Can you believe that they haven’t gotten the message yet? Taxpayers must continue to speak out.
Next dirty secret »
The Bad News
The next dirty spending secret is that many Washington liberals are determined to keep spending more, raising the federal debt (already more than $15 trillion and 100% of our Gross Domestic Product), and increasing taxes.
The Good News
They can be stopped. The 2010 election showed that Americans are aware of the challenges we face. Polls show that voters are disgusted by all the spending. We have a real opportunity to make dramatic cuts in spending over the next few years and save the American Dream from national bankruptcy. Outrages like the ones you’ve just read can become a thing of the past.
To become part of the solution, please sign the Citizens’ Open Letter to Congress on Spending and Debt by The Heritage Foundation, the most influential policy think tank in America. Heritage will use this letter as part of its arsenal to show Congress the need for cuts . . . and your name will be among the countless Americans listed.