Column #495      February 21, 2025FRAUD WASTE and ABUSE “Not Yours to Give!”

We’ve known for years that our government hasn’t been forthright in foreign affairs. For instance, the 1990 US/NATO promise to Russia about “not one inch eastward” was an empty promise that led to millions of deaths and trillions of dollars wasted. Yes, the Russians were goaded into invading Ukraine because that promise was broken as NATO moved eastward by leaps and bounds. Then, in February 2014, our country (under Obama) caused the overthrow of the democratically elected Ukrainian government which was the last straw.1 2

For decades now the US (bureaucrats, politicians, and their MSM) have lied repeatedly about having lied about the “not one inch eastward” promise. At the same time Putin has repeatedly reminded the world of the actual history regarding the breakup of the former Soviet Union. In response, the United States and European countries have called Russia evil, aggressive, and the source of the problem rather than the victim of lies and deceit.

I can list many a nation where the US has overthrown their governments with dirty tricks. Ukraine, Iraq, Libya, Yugoslavia, Ecuador, Afghanistan, Venezuela and the list goes on. In fact, since the Second World War the US has overthrown, or attempted to overthrow, no less than 57 foreign governments!3

That show of intimidation, aggression, and manipulation is the legacy of Americans stupefied with power. If that’s true, then its sources are nonother than US bureaucrats and duplicitous politicians. And if that’s true, why shouldn’t American citizens expect to be receivers of the same kind of treatment that has been handed out to entire foreign countries?

As a matter of course our government refuses to disclose facts and purposely hides its actions. How often do freedom of information requests come back with the documents being marked up with numerous redactions? That is our government’s bureaucracy hiding information from the citizens. A large number of our bureaucrats seem to favor woke beliefs and the policies and beliefs of the Democratic party. A poll in December of the Federal Government’s Managers indicated that only 44% said they would support the current administration with 42% saying they would resist it.

That means that many of our bureaucrats certainly don’t want job reviews, audits, money trails, and such reviewed by anyone. And the same poll found that the nation’s “1% elites” felt the same way as did the bureaucrats. The poll found that “Only 17% of Democratic managers who voted for Harris would follow Trump’s orders. Three times as many (64%) said they would ignore his orders and do what they thought was best.”4

Literally, the subversive bureaucrats and their politician friends believe it’s their place to rule over the democratically elected president, his confirmed cabinet members, and his hired consultants and specialists. At the same time the MSM, a Marxist lapdog, they fund to spread their lies. That’s why all we hear in the news are Democrats screaming about Elon Musk acting like he is the president. Of course it’s total nonsense to think Musk is running the government nor does he have any ambitions in that direction.

Musk was asked by the president to head up DOGE and present its findings. With its information the president and his cabinet heads can make better decisions in addressing waste, fraud, and abuse. Personably, Musk wants a transparent government, fewer regulations, free speech, lower taxes, no open borders, a legal system based on the Constitution, and a crime-free country. That’s something all business owners want because, in that kind of environment, EVERYONE thrives.

The protests against reducing fraud, waste, and abuse in the Federal government’s many agencies only makes sense if the protestors are involved in benefitting from the fraud, waste, and abuse. Why on earth would any reasonable bureaucrat, politician, or citizen protest the idea of having an honest, thrifty, and carefully managed government? How could any journalist write articles complaining about ending waste, fraud, and abuse? They wouldn’t, especially given the state of financial affairs our government is in now.

We’ve always known the government wastes our tax dollars. But DOGE’s disclosures have been major eyeopeners. To find out how USAID operated and spent the people’s money was quite shocking. USAID had a budget of more than $50 billion for the fiscal year 2023 and employed approximately 10,235 people scattered around the world. Its spending habits were so egregious and unpatriotic that it was immediately shut down and its remaining duties transferred to the State Department. The protests against the closure were deafening. We are assuming that’s because it was funding many liberal political causes and politicians.5

DOGE’s peak inside the Treasure Department revealed that $4.7 Trillion in treasury payments are missing identification codes. Therefore the auditors can’t make a quick determination of where the money went. To not disclose where money is going is a very unprofessional business practice. Yet the government’s managers who overlooked basic accounting principles were paid way more in salaries and benefits than what’s available in many private sector jobs.6

Then over this past weekend, Musk said DOGE might be on the trail of "the biggest fraud in history," as SSA data appears to show that 20.789 million Americans over the age of 100 are not “dead.” Possibly, that indicates “dead” people are being paid Social Security retirement benefits. That includes 12 million who are purportedly more than 120 years old. There is maybe a reason for some of the excess numbers in that illegal aliens might be using them. But no matter, when the disclosure was made the acting commissioner of the Social Security Administration, Michelle King, immediately left after having worked for the SSA for 30 years.7

The same people defending our government’s fraud, waste, and abuse are most likely the same power mad folks that rebel against the president, believe they can rule over the American people, overthrow foreign governments, and hide their deeds from American citizens. They are influenced by the huge trillion-dollar budgets they get to manage and vote for. It’s easy to spend other people’s money especially when it makes you feel so powerful. And when spending $6.752 trillion a year of other people’s money that gives bureaucrats and complicit politicians a feeling of overwhelming power.

A year ago Senator Rand Paul gave a 13-minute speech quoting “Davy Crockett: Not Yours To Give!” It perfectly described what has happened to our bureaucrats and two centuries of complicit politicians. And only now, with Trump using Musk to manage DOGE’s AI knowledge, is there an attempt to rein in the fraud, waste, and abuse that manifested itself in our Federal government following 200 years of neglect.8 9

One can easily see from the protests that fraud, waste, and abuse have become a way of life for way too many Americans. It must stop now. The majority recently spoke for long overdo reform and Trump happens to be the perfect catalyst. Will the people end up having the courage to actually go through with his plan?

To your health.

Ted Slanker

Ted Slanker has been reporting on the fundamentals of nutritional research in publications, television and radio appearances, and at conferences since 1999. He condenses complex studies into the basics required for health and well-being. His eBook, The Real Diet of Man, is available online.

For additional reading:

1. NATO Expansion: What Gorbachev Heard from National Security Archive at The George Washington University

2. Why Did America Overthrow a Democratically Elected Government in Ukraine? by Silas Nyamweya from Hub Pages

3. Overthrowing Other People’s Governments: The Master List by William Blum

4. DEEP STATE GEARING UP: Nearly Half of Federal Employees in the Swamp Plan to Resist Trump, Poll Finds by Tyler O'Neil from The Daily Signal

5. At USAID, Waste and Abuse Runs Deep from Whitehouse.gov

6. DOGE Says $4.7 Trillion in Treasury Payments Missing Identification Codes by Aldgra Fredly from The Epoch Times

7.  Elon Musk ‘Uncovers’ 20M in Social Security Database over Age 100 — Here’s Why They’re Listed and Don’t Get Benefits by Josh Christenson    from NY Post

8. Department of Government Efficiency

9. Rand Paul Quoting Davy Crockett (Not Yours to Give) and Speaking on $40 Billion in Aid to Ukraine