Author: Redactor

Senator Rand Paul (R.-Ky.) has published his annual “Festivus Report” on federal government spending, and it doesn’t look good. The federal debt is on a multi-​trillion-​dollar spree, yet politicians keep throwing money around:

• Ghost Towns on the Government’s Dime: The federal government spent $10 billion on maintaining, leasing, and furnishing almost entirely empty buildings
• A Pandemic Plunder: A Florida man stole $8 million in COVID-​19 Relief funds to buy an island and more
• Your Tax Dollars at Play: The Department of the Interior (DOI) spent $12 Million on a Las Vegas Pickleball Complex
• Taxpayers Fund a Disinformation Index: The Department of State (DOS) wasted $330,000 to fund censorship of non- liberal and conservative media
• Hold on to Your Steering Wheels: The Department of Energy (DOE) spent $15.5 billion to push Americans toward electric vehicles they don’t want
• The Influencer Effect Hits Foreign Policy: The Department of State (DOS) squandered $4,840,082 on influencers
• When Bailouts Go Bust: The United States Department of the Treasury (USDT) granted a failed trucking company a $700 million pandemic-​era loan
• Flocking Together! DEI Takes Flight: The National Science Foundation (NSF) spent $288,563 to ensure bird watching groups have safe spaces aka “Affinity Groups”
• Interest-​ingly Wasteful: Americans are paying $892 billion in fiscal year 2024 on the interest on Uncle Sam’s Credit Card
• Because Who Needs a Secure U.S. Border, Anyway? The Department of State (DOS) spent $2.1 million for Paraguayan Border Security

These are just a few highlights. Read the full report for more juicy boondoggles and drunken-​sailor prodigality. 

“This year, I am highlighting a whopping $1,008,313,329,626.12,” explains the senator. “That’s over $1 trillion in government waste, including things like ice-​skating drag queens, a $12 Million Las Vegas pickleball complex, $4,840,082 on Ukrainian influencers, and more! No matter how much money the government has wasted, politicians keep demanding even more.”

The United States federal government has been charged with protecting us from foreign enemies. But have those butcher’s‑and-baker’s dozen of intel agencies and the Pentagon and Homeland Security really done the job?

WASHINGTON (AP) — A top White House official on Wednesday said at least eight U.S. telecom firms and dozens of nations have been impacted by a Chinese hacking campaign.

Deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger offered new details about the breadth of the sprawling Chinese hacking campaign that gave officials in Beijing access to private texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans.

Neuberger divulged the scope of the hack a day after the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued guidance intended to help root out the hackers and prevent similar cyberespionage in the future. White House officials cautioned that the number of telecommunication firms and countries impacted could still grow.

The U.S. believes that the hackers were able to gain access to communications of senior U.S. government officials and prominent political figures through the hack, Neuberger said. 

Aamer Madhani, “White House says at least 8 US telecom firms, dozens of nations impacted by China hacking campaign,” Associated Press, December 4, 2024.

The report has not been all that widely discussed, oddly enough. How extensive were the cyber-​incursions? “The number of countries impacted by the hack is currently believed to be in the ‘low, couple dozen,’ according to a senior administration official.”

For more information on Chinese communist aggression, see StoptheChinazis​.org.