Staff Reports
It was the spring of 2020, and America came to a grinding halt. Businesses shut down, schools closed, and people were left scratching their heads, wondering what hit them. Who or what was responsible for this economic catastrophe? Well, according to Jim Thompson, it was none other than the government. In his witty and sarcastic style, he takes us on a journey to uncover the mystery of the missing COVID cash.
What Happened to All That COVID Cash? As Much as a Trillion Dollars Was Stolen, Misused, or Misappropriated https://t.co/dVam2HZOWV
— RedState (@RedState) July 17, 2023
When the pandemic hit, Congress sprang into action, passing spending bills left and right. The CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan promised trillions of dollars in relief funds. But where did all that money go? Thompson reveals that it vanished into thin air, lost to a myriad of fraudulent schemes, grifters, and plain old mismanagement.
California, the Golden State, turned out to be a goldmine for fraudsters. They managed to snatch at least $20 billion from the government coffers, with some estimates suggesting the actual amount could be as high as $32 billion. How did they do it? Thompson humorously points out that criminals simply filled out bogus paperwork with stolen Social Security numbers, and no one seemed to be watching. They were practically given free reign over the state’s unemployment funds.
But California is not alone in its misfortune. Thompson reveals that an early estimate suggests that a whopping $280 billion, nearly 10 percent of the total COVID relief funds approved by Congress, went missing in just the first two years of the pandemic. To put that into perspective, Bernie Madoff’s infamous Ponzi scheme, which took decades to accumulate, was a mere $64 billion. Apparently, Congress and state governments have outdone even the most skilled swindlers in a matter of months.
Michael Horowitz, the U.S. Justice Department inspector general and head of the federal Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, testified before Congress that fraud amounted to “tens of billions of dollars” and could potentially reach $100 billion. However, Thompson adds his own editorial opinion, stating that these estimates are pathetically low. He highlights an expert’s claim that the government may have lost a whopping trillion dollars due to fraud. Yep, you read that right, a trillion dollars! Who needs conventional bank heists when you can just steal from the government?
Thompson doesn’t shy away from sharing some colorful examples of the audacity of these fraudsters. From a fake Senator Feinstein claiming unemployment benefits to a man named Mr. Poopy Pants getting paid for his unemployment application, it’s clear that the con artists were having a field day. Even a guy running a “pee-pee in a Coke” business managed to swindle the government. And let’s not forget Nuke Bizzle, the rapper who effortlessly pocketed over $700,000 in unemployment funds and is currently serving a six-year prison sentence.
Not to be outdone, a Romanian gang allegedly pulled off a jaw-dropping $38 billion EBT card fraud in Los Angeles County. It seems like these criminals were living by the motto, “Go big or go home!” And for the most part, they managed to get away with it. The sad reality is that much of the stolen money is gone for good, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill.
Thompson concludes his article with a scathing remark about the sheer lack of care and disregard for accountability on the part of the government. As much as a trillion dollars disappeared into the ether, without any real consequences for those responsible. It’s a punchline that’s not so funny when you realize that it’s the hardworking American taxpayers who will ultimately pay for this colossal mismanagement and negligence.
With Thompson’s sharp wit and captivating storytelling, he brings to light the epic tale of the missing COVID cash. It’s a story of greed, fraud, and incompetence that will leave readers shaking their heads in disbelief. But hey, at least we got a good laugh out of it, right?
