You're watching...
Sen. Tom Coburn releases report that identifies billions of allocated government money that has remained unspent for years
Also in this playlist...
Auto-advance: ON
Auto-advance
This transcript is automatically generated
Almost sixteen trillion that is the federal debt right now.
So it should the government be doing everything it can to pay down the debt now that does seem obvious but get this.
More than seventy billion in federal funds is sitting an old accounts unspent and wasted that's right.
Congress appropriate that money for everything from education highways but -- -- -- bank accounts never spent.
Now how could that be possible we -- -- Tom Coburn.
So the billion dollars that that -- good -- -- -- which.
Have a tough time get back no efforts being made to get it back and yet it's already money would -- an interest on -- doing that.
And explain it this is money that the federal government.
Has appropriated sent out to the agencies and even on to state and local government and -- great teams and grant -- Never been spent just sitting there seventy billion dollars or what -- it just sitting there.
Well take big letters at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
Two point six million dollars -- sit there.
-- -- they've been over for sixteen years.
Is there no way for the federal government is sure.
Why are we going to get this two point six million that's a question that we ought to -- -- and oversight committees in the program.
-- let me echo through the list and number one on -- -- favorites is Detroit Michigan which hasn't actually deplorable school system.
And it it has top tens of millions of dollars that it has been granted by the federal government to fix it school system never used to sit -- And they have been.
-- They think about you get HIV patients they've taken drugs but yet there's millions of dollars.
And that program for HIV patients and we can't get a -- To -- the drugs.
It's seven billion of cool universe of fun -- just sitting -- you weren't going to be worse could -- worse that's what we can talk.
You know whether that's just what my office that I'm not I don't have the access -- the appropriators have -- these accounts that -- -- I'm sure I can find more.
But the fact is this that -- and let's get to seventy billion back cannot borrow suddenly billion dollars more this year.
Not -- that coming shouldn't be bidding could.
The delay the time which we have to face another dividend and why don't we -- Wyman the Detroit school system used the money it's given them I can give you that I can I don't recall -- -- the details on why they didn't think confidence it.
Anybody have a good reason not to use of money this monopolies -- -- -- Do they even know the money sitting there yes I have let the agencies that send it out I have -- they have any inclination to try to go like a lot and force it to be years.
Well -- -- their oversight -- held accountable by members of congress which requires work which means you have to actually do your homework and try to find out where this if I mean we've got we've got an earmark.
For mag -- train from Nevada to California.
46 million dollars.
It's been sitting there it's not ever gonna go anywhere and because it's not politically right to bring -- back.
It's not ever gonna come back so we -- 46 million dollars to sit there do enough and now has competition from a private for me.
It's gonna run between Las Vegas and California -- tell me what we're gonna get back.
You hit the discussion about raising tax Republicans don't raise taxes Democrats want to raise taxes on certain.
People -- -- tell us.
It's sort of hardware when you have this discussion about raising taxes when we see that the government has -- a lot of money looked the other way seventy billion dollars that you thought.
And never bothered to go see that it's actually used.
-- that we recovered back into the treasury -- the big picture at least 400 billion dollars.
Indeed the -- in place for for a.
That's a whole another category yeah that's another category that's but that's.
Per year.
Per year and so we're talking about race it.
Since we're talking about the federal government -- of one point four trillion dollars this year and here's 400 billion dollars and they refuse.
On amendment after amendment on the senate floor to buy into -- so.
Because every one of these programs.
Have a constituent.
And nobody wants the bucket constituent by doing the right thing that will the real constituent is our kids.
And our country and so we're we're not doing what we need to do to fix the problem.
170 billion currently that you relocate -- assistant someplace never -- this goes on for years writes this it different here since 1996 the Olympics.
There is now I'm -- -- an effort and it's a bill that deadly senator Warner I think is introducing.
To try to give some a -- the federal government can recover and return that money.
How that was second to be unanimous vote tentative and I -- it really.
Not we will remember what this -- his first all the agencies don't wanna give it back.
It if you take it back it lowers their baseline so therefore they don't get as much money the next.
That's number one.
Number -- if you take it back appropriators won't be able to reallocate money without anybody ever no one will win.
In other -- staff on appropriation can reprogram money.
Without a uterus in this nobody in America -- them know where it went so you take away the flexibility to the enhanced parochial interest I even politician.
This initiative set every American to chair umpire and criminal -- words.
-- -- -- -- --
