IT'S ONLY $18 MILLION

It was recently announced that thousands of stimulus payments were sent to deceased citizens and prisoners. Where was the uproar from the all-knowing, all-seeing national main stream media? I have seen some coverage in the Wall Street Journal, and the conservative website Townhall.com. Within the past few days I have even seen a story on one of my local television stations, but that is about all. Where is the uproar?

The Townhall.com article indicated that $18 million went to nearly 72,000 who were dead per a report from the Social Security Administration. In addition $4.3 million was distributed to 17,000 prison inmates. One statement from the Social Security Administration raised my blood pressure because it said, “Dead people were ineligible to get payments, but there is no provision in the law to recover payments incorrectly sent to dead people.”

Did those fools ever consider that if Congress read the provisions of the legislation they approved, someone might just have seen the error of their ways before millions were wasted or mis-spent? When will the insanity that prevails in Washington be brought to an abrupt end? Will somebody please tell our elected officials the definition of ACCOUNTABILITY?

The Social Security Administration should have actuaries who could predict, based upon historical data, almost exactly the number of recipients who die in any given month, and write legislation requiring return in case of death. Unfortunately our elected officials continue to spend recklessly, ignoring our massive fiscal obligations, because they will be out of office when their debts are repaid. House and Senate retirees will be long gone with their fat life-time pensions and perks when you and I have to pony up our personal funds to cover their irresponsible actions.

This blatant criminal disregard for good order reminds me of a famous quote from legendary President Ronald Reagan who said, “They say that government spends like drunken sailors, but that would be unfair to drunken sailors, because they spend their own money.”

COMMANDER GRANGER