Jolie Rouge
09-21-2011, 02:39 PM
$16 muffins, $8 coffee served in Justice audit
By JoAnne Allen | Reuters – 8 hrs ago
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As the U.S. government grapples to find ways to trim the bloated federal deficit, a new report suggests officials might start with cutting out $16 muffins and $10 cookies. "We found the Department (of Justice) spent $16 on each of the 250 muffins served at an August 2009 legal conference in Washington," said a DOJ Office of Inspector General report released on Tuesday.
The DOJ spent $121 million on conferences in fiscal 2008 and 2009, which exceeded its own spending limits and appeared to be extravagant and wasteful, according to the report that examined 10 conferences held during that period.
The review turned up the expensive muffins, which came from the Capital Hilton Hotel just blocks from the White House, as well as cookies and brownies that cost almost $10 each.
The department spent $32 per person on snacks of Cracker Jack, popcorn, and candy bars and coffee that cost $8.24 per cup at another conference, the report said.
The DOJ also spent nearly $600,000 for event planning services for five conferences, the document said.
A Justice Department spokeswoman said most of the gathering were held when there were no strict limits on food and beverage costs, adding the DOJ had taken steps since 2009 "to ensure that these problems do not occur again."
Word of the agency's extravagant spending drew a swift response from Capitol Hill.
Senator Chuck Grassley, the senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee which has oversight of the Justice Department, said the report was a blueprint for the first cuts that should be made by the "super committee" searching for at least $1.2 trillion in savings. "Sixteen dollar muffins and $600,000 for event planning services are what make Americans cynical about government and why they are demanding change," Grassley said in a statement. "People are outraged, and rightly so."
http://news.yahoo.com/16-muffins-8-coffee-served-justice-audit-023623142.html;_ylt=AjaCIzkKmn21KYul9V3ea.v09XQA;_ ylu=X3oDMTRzaGFvYnFnBGNjb2RlA2N0LmMEbWl0A0FydGljbG UgTW9zdCBQb3B1bGFyBHBrZwMyMDVjYjI5MS1kNzZkLTMxODkt YjQ3Zi03ZjY1NzFjYWJmMTAEcG9zAzQEc2VjA01lZGlhQkxpc3 RNaXhlZE1vc3RQb3B1bGFyQ0EEdmVyA2MyMmQ2MTQwLWU0NTIt MTFlMC1hMWZiLTRiY2ExNjJmZDJkNg--;_ylg=X3oDMTJ2aTN2YmlwBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRw c3RhaWQDMGNkODc2ODEtOGUyNC0zOGQxLWJkM2UtZjYyYzU2Nz QzNGQzBHBzdGNhdANoZWFsdGgEcHQDc3RvcnlwYWdlBHRlc3QD ;_ylv=3
comments
This story hasn't changed in 50 years with these people. $600 hammers by the DOD back in the '70's to $16 muffins by the DOJ today. It all boils down to the way they appropriate their annual budgets. If they don't spend it this year, they don't get it next year. The only way they'll fix this is to eliminate as much of upper management as possible in all of these government organizations, replacing them with budget-minded honest people that only have the taxpayer's interests at heart. Good luck with that.
...
I work in local government and we have had to pool together for coffee, water, refrigerator, microwave, and cleaning services. We make things and bring to the office ourselves. How is this not possible at federal level.
....
What about free cell phones to welfare recipients? Cut cut cut.....
...
The government has always abused their spending power so this is nothing new to me and the millions of people who keep up with crap like this. I remember a long time ago before there were household computers available to everyone I read about the spending of crazy amounts for commode seats,screws and screw drivers etc etc etc stuff like that and I remember the price for the commode seat to be $600 and like I said it was in the early 80's when this was going on. Payroll,unnecessary items like that is the reason why the deficit is where it is. They started screwing it up from the very beginning and havent stopped yet and they never will.We have always been screwed by the government and always will be.
...
I am baking some muffins now!!!
By JoAnne Allen | Reuters – 8 hrs ago
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As the U.S. government grapples to find ways to trim the bloated federal deficit, a new report suggests officials might start with cutting out $16 muffins and $10 cookies. "We found the Department (of Justice) spent $16 on each of the 250 muffins served at an August 2009 legal conference in Washington," said a DOJ Office of Inspector General report released on Tuesday.
The DOJ spent $121 million on conferences in fiscal 2008 and 2009, which exceeded its own spending limits and appeared to be extravagant and wasteful, according to the report that examined 10 conferences held during that period.
The review turned up the expensive muffins, which came from the Capital Hilton Hotel just blocks from the White House, as well as cookies and brownies that cost almost $10 each.
The department spent $32 per person on snacks of Cracker Jack, popcorn, and candy bars and coffee that cost $8.24 per cup at another conference, the report said.
The DOJ also spent nearly $600,000 for event planning services for five conferences, the document said.
A Justice Department spokeswoman said most of the gathering were held when there were no strict limits on food and beverage costs, adding the DOJ had taken steps since 2009 "to ensure that these problems do not occur again."
Word of the agency's extravagant spending drew a swift response from Capitol Hill.
Senator Chuck Grassley, the senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee which has oversight of the Justice Department, said the report was a blueprint for the first cuts that should be made by the "super committee" searching for at least $1.2 trillion in savings. "Sixteen dollar muffins and $600,000 for event planning services are what make Americans cynical about government and why they are demanding change," Grassley said in a statement. "People are outraged, and rightly so."
http://news.yahoo.com/16-muffins-8-coffee-served-justice-audit-023623142.html;_ylt=AjaCIzkKmn21KYul9V3ea.v09XQA;_ ylu=X3oDMTRzaGFvYnFnBGNjb2RlA2N0LmMEbWl0A0FydGljbG UgTW9zdCBQb3B1bGFyBHBrZwMyMDVjYjI5MS1kNzZkLTMxODkt YjQ3Zi03ZjY1NzFjYWJmMTAEcG9zAzQEc2VjA01lZGlhQkxpc3 RNaXhlZE1vc3RQb3B1bGFyQ0EEdmVyA2MyMmQ2MTQwLWU0NTIt MTFlMC1hMWZiLTRiY2ExNjJmZDJkNg--;_ylg=X3oDMTJ2aTN2YmlwBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRw c3RhaWQDMGNkODc2ODEtOGUyNC0zOGQxLWJkM2UtZjYyYzU2Nz QzNGQzBHBzdGNhdANoZWFsdGgEcHQDc3RvcnlwYWdlBHRlc3QD ;_ylv=3
comments
This story hasn't changed in 50 years with these people. $600 hammers by the DOD back in the '70's to $16 muffins by the DOJ today. It all boils down to the way they appropriate their annual budgets. If they don't spend it this year, they don't get it next year. The only way they'll fix this is to eliminate as much of upper management as possible in all of these government organizations, replacing them with budget-minded honest people that only have the taxpayer's interests at heart. Good luck with that.
...
I work in local government and we have had to pool together for coffee, water, refrigerator, microwave, and cleaning services. We make things and bring to the office ourselves. How is this not possible at federal level.
....
What about free cell phones to welfare recipients? Cut cut cut.....
...
The government has always abused their spending power so this is nothing new to me and the millions of people who keep up with crap like this. I remember a long time ago before there were household computers available to everyone I read about the spending of crazy amounts for commode seats,screws and screw drivers etc etc etc stuff like that and I remember the price for the commode seat to be $600 and like I said it was in the early 80's when this was going on. Payroll,unnecessary items like that is the reason why the deficit is where it is. They started screwing it up from the very beginning and havent stopped yet and they never will.We have always been screwed by the government and always will be.
...
I am baking some muffins now!!!