Behind the Headlines Video
04/07/11 Rewarding Incompetence
The housing bubble burst in 2008. Through laws and regulations, Congress forced lenders to give mortgages to people who couldn't afford them. The result was inevitable.
Also guilty were Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They are the government-owned corporations that gobbled up billions of dollars in toxic mortgages, packaged them as securities, and sold them to Wall Street as safe investments.
In reality, they were junk.
Then 2008 happened.
Fannie and Freddie collapsed costing taxpayers $153 billion. This bailout is expected to skyrocket to more than $360 billion by 2013.
An Inspector General's report revealed the Fannie and Freddie CEOs were paid $17 million the last two years. The top six officers were paid a combined $35 million.
The federal government rewards incompetence and promotes failure. People rarely get disciplined or - shock - get fired.
Here's another example. I recently told you about a Government Accountability Office undercover sting and report. Some things just didn't add up.
So we filed a Freedom of Information Act Request. The GAO responded by rewriting its report. Further investigation found the GAO fabricated nearly all of it.
Last month, the head of GAO's special investigations unit was relieved of his duties over his role in the fraudulent report. But he still got to keep his job.
The housing bubble burst in 2008. Through laws and regulations, Congress forced lenders to give mortgages to people who couldn't afford them. The result was inevitable.
Also guilty were Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They are the government-owned corporations that gobbled up billions of dollars in toxic mortgages, packaged them as securities, and sold them to Wall Street as safe investments.
In reality, they were junk.
Then 2008 happened.
Fannie and Freddie collapsed costing taxpayers $153 billion. This bailout is expected to skyrocket to more than $360 billion by 2013.
An Inspector General's report revealed the Fannie and Freddie CEOs were paid $17 million the last two years. The top six officers were paid a combined $35 million.
The federal government rewards incompetence and promotes failure. People rarely get disciplined or - shock - get fired.
Here's another example. I recently told you about a Government Accountability Office undercover sting and report. Some things just didn't add up.
So we filed a Freedom of Information Act Request. The GAO responded by rewriting its report. Further investigation found the GAO fabricated nearly all of it.
Last month, the head of GAO's special investigations unit was relieved of his duties over his role in the fraudulent report. But he still got to keep his job.
NEWS TIPS
Do you have a news tip that you'd like us to investigate? Fill out the form below and let us know!
Video List
Around the Web
Polls: Americans fear government more than they fear terrorism
New York Times blames Golden Gloves boxing rules for Boston bombing
Politico shows just how childish some journalists have gotten
NBC & Chelsea Clinton demonstrate how bad journalism has gotten
Some people just plain do not understand the Free Market
Additional Resources
American Tort Reform Association
Bankrupting America
Better Government Association
Center for Responsive Politics
Citizens Against Government Waste
IE6 Float Fix