Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) is calling for an investigation, and billions in restitution to taxpayers, after an Associated Press report reveals state and local officials are spending billions of dollars under President Joe Biden’s “American Rescue Plan” on luxury amenities.
“The AP story, by Brian Slodysko, identified millions of ‘COVID aid’ dollars being spent on projects such as $140 million for a ‘high-end hotel that will have views of the Atlantic Ocean and an 11,000-square-foot spa,’ ‘$6.6 million to replace irrigation systems at two golf courses,’ ‘tens of millions of dollars for tourism marketing campaigns’ and many other examples.
The plan was rushed through Congress by Democrats, with little regard or plans for oversight to prevent fraud.
The report also found:
-Officials in Massachusetts spent $5 million in COVID relief fund to bail out the debts of the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate in Boston, which had been operating at a $27 million loss in the four years before the pandemic.New Jersey officials spent $15 million in COVID funds to “sweeten” a bid to host the 2026 World Cup.
-Washington, D.C. officials spent $2.5 million to hire additional parking enforcement officers, despite fewer people commuting and parking in the city.
-Local officials in New York’s Dutchess County spent $12 million to build a minor league baseball stadium
-Unable to spend all their federal money, some schools used their COVID funds on new sports arenas and football stadiums
“Last year I said Biden & Democrats’ ‘COVID relief’ bill was less than 10% related to COVID and jammed with wasteful spending and liberal pet projects. Now as you pay for record inflation at the grocery store and the gas pump, we see what your money is really being wasted on: Luxury hotels, ballparks, and ski slopes,” Senator Braun said. “I’m calling on these state and local governments spending COVID aid money on these projects to repay those taxpayer funds to the federal government so we can put it toward paying down our $30 trillion national debt.”
The total amount of fraud and misuse may never be known, as officials used accounting tricks to cover up the funds.
Local officials in Florida tried to hide $140 million in federal payments by putting the COVID funds in their general revenue accounts, transferring the money to projects, then announcing “no federal funds will be used to pay any of the cost of developing the Hotel Project.”
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Michael Brigham
Michael Brigham has written for American Action News since the summer of 2019. His areas of expertise include foreign affairs, government, and politics, but regardless of the subject matter, he has a nose and an insatiable appetite for news. In his free time, he enjoys reading nonfiction, watching a mix of comedies and true crime documentaries, and spending time away from the swamp hiking in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.
this is what the dems always do, there all lying, cheating, corrupt aholes
why must politicians steal from us?
Democrats should be jailed with Biden and Obama leading the group. Disgusting corrupt bums
Anyone surprised?
Well, the Goal is, THEM to be super-RICH, as if they weren’t already, and the rest of us POOR – DIRT POOR……
Fraud? There is no fraud in government… Just ask the democrats.
Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha !!! Accusing the Democrats of “corruption “. There is some corruption in the party, but the. Republicans are infinitely more corrupt . This is like Al Capone accusing. Elliot Ness of being a gangster !
A corrupt democrat…clutch the pearls!
Sen. Braun, the Republicans lead county of Greenville, SC is doing the same thing. We would love it to be investigated.