Friday was a great day for justice. A corrupt mayor, who had been
getting public money from the city he was suppose to work for, got
busted. According to the ABC News:
“Federal prosecutors today announced a
21-count indictment against former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, accused
of enriching himself as the city struggled to rebuild in the wake of
Hurricane Katrina. Nagin is accused of using the office of mayor to
steer city projects to business associates who, in turn, allegedly paid
kickbacks and bribes and flew him on lavish free trips to Hawaii,
Jamaica, and Las Vegas. Nagin was charged with bribery, honest service
wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and filing false tax returns.”
So does this teach us that crime doesn’t pay? Close. It teaches you
that crime doesn’t pay if you are a mere local politician. But if you
are the Pentagon, the rules are entirely different.
So does this teach us that crime doesn’t pay? Close. It teaches you
that crime doesn’t pay if you are a mere local politician. But if you
are the Pentagon, the rules are entirely different.
“The Government Accountability Office
said Thursday that it could not complete an audit of the federal
government, pointing to serious problems with the Department of Defense…
‘The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) cannot render an
opinion on the 2012 consolidated financial statements of the federal
government because of widespread material internal control weaknesses,
significant uncertainties, and other limitations,” the agency said. ‘As
was the case in 2011, the main obstacles to a GAO opinion on the
accrual-based consolidated financial statements were: Serious financial
management problems at the Department of Defense (DOD) that made its
financial statements unauditable. The federal government’s inability to
adequately account for and reconcile intragovernmental activity and
balances between federal agencies. The federal government’s ineffective
process for preparing the consolidated financial statements.’”
Now, I’ll grant, this report doesn’t a list of people who lined their
pockets. But don’t be fooled. The fact that the books can’t be
reconciled is because money went into secret places. This wasn’t lost in
the couch; it lined someone’s pockets. For two years in a row now, the
military has not been able to present financial statements that can be
audited.
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