John Stossel: Shutdown Theater

This is where you come in.      Government wants you to play a role in the "shutdown" of the federal government. Your role is to panic. Republicans and Democrats both assume that shutting some government is a terrible thing. The press concurs. "Shutdown threatens fragile economy," warns Politico. "Federal workers turn to prayer,"   ... MORE

L. Brent Bozell: The Ministry Of Confusion

Observations on official tail-chasing.       I can think of one reason to end the federal shutdown: There are a lot of stupid people now roaming the streets. The Feds, however, do not have a monopoly on idiocy. Bureaucratic bumbling can be found wherever there's large government, even on the state, and yes, on the county level.  ... MORE

Over 93% Of EPA Employees Considered 'Non-Essential'

by Tony Lee.           More than nine out of every ten employees at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are considered "non-essential" and have been furloughed in the federal government's shutdown. Reuters obtained an EPA guidance in which the agency said it would "classify 1,069 employees, out of 16,205, as essential," which is about 6.6%       ... MORE

Emily Goff: The Top 10 Ways Washington Wastes Money

Lawmakers have lost control.      Whether it’s negotiating over how much to spend on government operations or the government’s borrowing limit, we hear a familiar refrain in Washington these days: There is absolutely no room to cut federal spending. This is not the case. Many people remember the millions spent on the infamous “Bridge     ... MORE

Fed Workers Paid $155M To Work For Labor Unions

by Alissa Tabirian.       Federal employees were paid more than $155 million of taxpayer dollars in 2011 for spending more than 3.4 million hours of "official time" on labor union activities that fell outside their assigned government duties, according to a survey by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). "Voluntary membership in        ... MORE

IRS Pays Over 200 Employees To Work Full-Time For Union

by Eliana Johnson.    The Internal Revenue Service pays over 200 full-time employees not to conduct audits or process tax returns but to work for a federal employees’ union, according to documents released by the agency in response to a Freedom of Information Act request by the advocacy group Americans for Limited Government. Forty-three  ... MORE

U.S. State Dept Spends $630,000 On Facebook "Likes"

Your tax dollars at work.   The US State Department was Wednesday under fire for spending $630,000 over two years to win millions of "likes" on its Facebook pages at a time of severe government austerity measures. A scathing report by the department's independent watchdog took the coordinators of its social media outreach policy to task saying  ... MORE

The War On Pot Is Insanely Racist & Insanely Expensive

by Mike Riggs.    Across the United States--north, east, south, west--blacks are more likely than whites to be arrested for marijuana possession. That's the conclusion of a new ACLU report that compares arrest data from 945 counties across the country. "In 2010, the Black arrest rate for marijuana possession was 716 per 100,000, while   ... MORE

Louis Woodhill: The Folly Of Government Venture Capital

Another $171 million taxpayer dollars down the tubes. If you go to www.fiskerautomotive.com, you see a picture of a red Fisker Karma sedan and the words, “Welcome.  New Site coming soon.”  Ominously, if you click on the “Tomorrow” link at the top of the page, nothing happens.  In fact, none of the links on the page produce any    ... MORE

No More Tax Dollars For Presidential Libraries

by Gene Healy.    Last week, at the dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, President Obama and former Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter put partisanship aside and descended on the Southern Methodist University campus in Dallas to say nice things about our 43rd president, (They're all in the same racket, after all.)     ... MORE

VIDEO: Don't Cops Have Better Things To Do

Sex first, then arrest hooker. Your tax dollars at work!

John Stossel: A Post-Post Office World

A system of cumbersome inefficiency.  Even parts of government that look like a business never get run with the efficiency of a business. Just look at the post office. They buy commercials and tout their services the way private businesses do. They offer a service that customers want. But a real business can't get away with losing   ... MORE

DHS Explains Plans To Buy 1.6 Billion Rounds Of Ammo

It is all about saving taxpayer money.      The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has responded to a letter dated November 13, 2012 from Senator Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) regarding the agency's ammunition purchases. Sen. Coburn published the response on the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs      ... MORE

Budget Cuts Could Pull Navy Out Of The War On Drugs

Tail-chasing activities may have to be curbed.  U.S. Navy frigates will stop patrolling for drug runners by April because of forced sequestration budget cuts, a Navy spokesman told USNI News on Monday. On Saturday, U.S. 4th Fleet was informed by Navy leadership it would suspend deployments of two ships—part of the Joint     ... MORE

VIDEO: Giving Away Money Costs More Than You Think

A Fisher: 6 Unbelievably Dumb Congressional Hearings

Sex, violence and satan.      In the wake of last December's school shooting, Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-West Virginia) has proposed yet another congressional study on violent video games (he's joined in his effort by Nebraska Republican Sen. Mike Johanns). Such studies are typically accompanied by hearings where members of the World's Greatest   ... MORE

John Stossel: Shopping Around For A Better Life

Thanks, California!    Thanks for your monstrous spending and absurd regulatory overreach! America needs you. We need Connecticut and Illinois, too! We need you the way we needed the Soviet Union, as models of failure, to warn us what happens if we believe those who say, "Government can." Moving to California was once the dream for many Americans.  ... MORE

EBT Abuse: Government's Cash-For-Drunkards Program

by Michelle Malkin.        From New York to New Mexico and across the dependent plains, welfare recipients are getting sauced on the public dime. Drunk, besotted, bombed. But while politicians pay lip service to cutting government waste, fraud and abuse, they're doing very little in practice to stop the EBT party excesses. Where's the compassion for taxpayers? ... MORE

Gene Healy: Homeland Security Grants Subsidize Dystopia

The war on terror has come home. "Do I think al Qaeda is going to target Pumpkin Fest? No, but are there fringe groups that want to make a statement? Yes." That's the police chief of Keene, N.H. (pop. 23,000), justifying his decision to buy a BearCat armored personnel carrier with a federal Department of Homeland Security grant. After all, you      ... MORE

VIDEO: California Taxpayers Soaked By Lifeguards

Exposed: California lifeguards paid $200,000 and retire at age 50.