Sen. Paul's 'Festivus Report' Reveals Government Wasted $52,598,515,585

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., in the issuance of his annual "Festivus Report," revealed the government wasted $52,598,515,585. 

Paul, who sits as Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee for Emerging Threats and Spending Oversight, divided in his report the government's wasteful spending into subcategories which included areas such as COVID-19, Afghanistan, and miscellaneous. 

For COVID, Paul detailed that $4.29 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program went to people who did not qualify, $36 billion in unemployment was "paid improperly, with a significant portion attributable to fraud," and $4.5 million was spent on "grinding up ferrets to develop COVID and flu vaccines." 

Additionally, the report details that $465,339 was issued as a grant to study pigeons' gambling habits with the hope to understand human gambling habits better, $11.3 million went to instructing "the people of Vietnam to stop burning their trash," and $361,001 was issued as a grant to see if letting kids eat junk food makes them want to eat more.

"No matter how much money's already been wasted, politicians keep demanding even more," the report stated.

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