Senator Rand Paul’s annual “Festivus Report” for 2024 is out, and it details over $1 trillion in what he considers to be wasteful government spending. The 41-page report, inspired by the Seinfeld holiday of airing grievances, highlights numerous examples of taxpayer money being spent in ways that many would find questionable.
Here are some of the key examples mentioned in the video:
- Fertilizer in Foreign Countries: The USDA spent $20 million on the “FertilizRight” initiative, aimed at promoting fertilizer use in countries like Pakistan, Vietnam, Colombia, and Brazil.
- Social Media Training in Kazakhstan: The Department of State spent over $123,000 to teach Kazakhstani youth how to “go viral” on social media.
- Cat Experiments: The Department of Defense spent over $10 million on “orwellian cat experiments,” which reportedly involved strapping kittens to a table, spinning them, and drilling holes into their skulls.
- Sesame Street in Iraq: The Agency for International Development (USAID) spent approximately $20 million on “Alan Simpson,” a new Sesame Street show in Iraq.
- Fighting Misinformation in Bosnia: The Department of State spent about a quarter of a million dollars in Bosnia to combat misinformation.
- Climate Change Cabaret on Ice Skates: The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) awarded The Bearded Ladies Cabaret a $10,000 grant for a cabaret show on ice skates focused on climate change.
The video also mentions that Elon Musk and others are planning to create a website with dashboards to track government spending, potentially using Senator Paul’s Festivus report as a guide.
Senator Paul’s report paints a picture of significant government overspending, and the full 41-page document can be found online.
