Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky released his annual “Festivus” report on Monday, spotlighting more than $1 trillion in government waste from the past year.
The 2024 edition marks the 10th year Paul has published this report, which details instances of federal spending he considers unnecessary or extravagant.
“This year, I am highlighting a whopping $1,008,313,329,626.12,” Paul wrote in the report. “That’s over $1 trillion in government waste, including things like ice-skating drag queens, a $12 million Las Vegas pickleball complex, $4,840,082 on Ukrainian influencers, and more! No matter how much money the government has wasted, politicians keep demanding even more.”
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Among the expenditures detailed in Paul’s report is $12 million spent by the Department of the Interior (DOI) on a pickleball complex in Las Vegas.
The DOI also allocated $720,479 for wetland conservation projects for ducks in Mexico.
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) awarded a $10,000 grant to support a cabaret show on ice skates centered on climate change.
Additionally, the NEA spent $365,000 to promote circuses in city parks across the United States.
The State Department was also a target of scrutiny.
According to the report, it spent $500,000 to expand the #USInvestsInEthiopians social media campaign into a broader public relations initiative, $253,653 to combat misinformation in Bosnia, $2.1 million for border security efforts in Paraguay, and $3 million for a “Girl-Centered Climate Action” program in Brazil.
Other expenditures included $419,470 by the Department of Health and Human Services to study whether lonely rats are more likely to seek cocaine than happy rats, and $288,563 by the National Science Foundation to create “safe spaces” for bird-watching groups, referred to as “Affinity Groups.”
In response to what he views as rampant fiscal irresponsibility, Paul reiterated his commitment to combating government waste.
“I have a lot of problems with federal spending, and now it’s time to hear all about them,” Paul wrote in the report.
He also emphasized the need for fiscal responsibility, especially during the holiday season, stating, “As always, taking the path to fiscal responsibility is often a lonely journey, but I’ve been fighting government waste like DOGE before DOGE was cool.”
Paul’s report comes as many Americans continue to grapple with the economic fallout of high inflation.
Inflation reached a peak of 9.1% in June 2022 during President Joe Biden’s term.
While inflation has eased somewhat, prices remain elevated, with the consumer price index (CPI) showing a 2.7% year-over-year increase in November, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Some economists attribute the sustained inflation to massive government spending under the Biden-Harris administration.
The national debt currently stands at $36.16 trillion, according to data from the U.S. Treasury.
In an effort to address wasteful spending, President-elect Donald Trump recently announced the formation of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which will be co-chaired by businessman Vivek Ramaswamy and entrepreneur Elon Musk.
This new department aims to identify and eliminate unnecessary government expenditures.
Paul’s Festivus report serves as a call for greater oversight of federal spending.
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