TARP Plus ACORN Equals $$$

Posted By Bobby Eberle On April 24, 2009 at 7:18 am

One of the problems of TARP (Troubled Assets Relief Program) is the complete lack of accountability in how the funds are spent. A lending institution or other entity could be billions of dollars in debt, come to the federal government for a bailout, and then waste it on parties or trips. In addition, these companies could also use the money to fund left-wing fringe groups, and we have no say whatsoever.

If a company requests taxpayer money, then the taxpayers need to know how that money is being spent. More importantly, since the entire program is designed to help "troubled" companies, the money should be focused on restoring the company to "good health," not funding groups like ACORN whose sole job is to promote a left-wing agenda.

Oklahoma Sen. James Inhofe is addressing this problem with an amendment to S.386 -- the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 (FERA). Inhofe's amendment (announced with Sens. DeMint, Vitter, and Ensign, "would require TARP recipients to fully disclose any expenditures that are not essential to restoring their solvency."

As Inhofe notes in his press release, "Some of these companies have donated to ACORN, Friends of the Earth, Planned Parenthood ... to name just a few. The vast majority of Americans do not support the agendas of these fringe groups, whose excesses have been well-documented over the years."

Inhofe's objective is simple: "If they're not focused on increasing their solvency or liquidity, if they're not working on lending to small businesses and individuals, if they're not helping get this economy back on track, and are instead financing extremist organizations, then the American people need to know about it."

Transparency and accountability are two processes that are in short supply in Washington. To give away billions of taxpayer dollars with no accountability and no real plan should be criminal. To use that money to fund groups like ACORN is beyond crazy. It's OUR money! Obama, CNN, and the Congress seem to forget that fact.