Fraud Red Flags on the Horizon - Will John McCain Sit in His Hands?

Nov. 16, 2009 - ABC News Exclusive - Jobs 'Saved or Created' in Congressional Districts That Don't Exist

In Arizona's 15th congressional district, 30 jobs have been saved or created with just $761,420 in federal stimulus spending. ...There's one problem, though: There is no 15th congressional district in Arizona; the state has only eight districts. And ABC News has found many more entries for projects like this in places that are incorrectly identified.
.
Late Monday, officials with the Recovery Board created to track the stimulus spending, said the mistakes in crediting nonexistent congressional districts were caused by human error [sic].

FRAUD INVESTIGATOR's OPINION: It is definitely time for actual recipient names and dollar amounts to be ascertained in connection with diligent forensic investigations. The excuse of 'human error' fails in view of multiple occurrences and the amounts of taxpayer-financed stimulus funds involved. Fraud was predicted early on in disbursements of huge stimulus payments; now we know why. Sen. McCain should be the first to demand a thorough investigation of the Arizona 'errors', in my opinion. - M.E.

BACKGROUND:
February 23, 2009 - Chicago Tribune Washington Bureau Swamp -Stimulus patrol: 'RAT' board gears up

Using the TARP as an example, former comptroller general and head of the Government Accountability Office, David M. Walker said the lesson to be learned from the $350 billion handed out to banks without stipulations or transparency is that "we still don't know what we got" from that program.

President Barack Obama today appointed Earl E. Devaney to serve as chairman, along with Vice-President Joe Biden, of the new Recovery Act Transparency and Accountability Board. Devaney, a former white-collar crime investigator for the Secret Service, has served as inspector general for the Department of the Interior since 1999.

The recovery board, dubbed the "RAT-Board" by some industry insiders, is an $84 million element of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act created to coordinate oversight and government-wide policy on how the overall $787 billion economic stimulus is spent. A key part of Obama's promise to provide transparency and accountability to taxpayers...