President Obama’s $757 billion economic stimulus program was promoted in 2009 as a way to jump-start the U.S. economy by injecting tax dollars that would stimulate new jobs and growth, especially through spending on new infrastructure like roads and bridges.
But hundreds of millions of dollars spent in the program went instead to elderly Filipinos, much of it virtually guaranteed never to make its way back to the U.S. economy.
Tucked away in the stimulus was a provision to pay $9,000 each to residents of the Philippines who fought alongside the U.S. in World War II. Those who had become U.S. citizens since the war got $15,000.
The stimulus payments — called Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation — started in April 2009. More than $225 million has since been paid to more than 18,000 Filipino vets. Slightly less than half of those now have U.S. citizenship, but may still live in the Philippines. The program was originally slated to spend $198 million.
So while Obama awards millions to Filipino vets our own vets suffer. Underworked doctors, crooked contracting officers, criminals, perverts and cheats are all part of the broken culture that rewards failure and punishes honest employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to a report released Tuesday by Sen. Tom Coburn.
"This investigation found the problems at the VA are far deeper than just scheduling. Over the past decade, more than 1,000 veterans may have died as a result of VA’s misconduct and the VA has paid out nearly $1 billion to veterans and their families for its medical malpractice," Coburn said in a statement about the report.
Thanks Mr. President.
