Growls

In the November/December 2009 issue of their Policy Report, the Cato Institute reported their director of tax policy studies "exposed what ought to be obvious to anyone: federal employees are quite well paid." Now comes word that federal employees at the Department of Justice are also living large while attending DoJ conferences.

Yesterday, Susan Jones reported at CNS News that a DoJ internal audit found that “DoJ conferences featured $16 muffins, hors d’Oeuvres at $7.32 a pop.” According to Jones:

“The inspector general's office examined 10 Justice Department (DOJ) conferences that took place between October 2007 and September 2009 to determine whether the costs of conference planning, meals, and refreshments were properly accounted for and minimized.

“The 10 sampled conferences -- four in Washington, D.C., three in Palm Springs, Calif., one each in Denver, San Francisco, and Istanbul, Turkey -- cost a total of $4.4 million. Fourteen percent of that total -- $600,000 -- was spent on logistical event-planning services. And DOJ spent $490,000 (11 percent of costs) on food and beverages at those 10 conferences.

“The inspector general's report said its assessment of food and beverage charges "revealed that some DOJ components did not minimize conference costs as required by federal and DOJ guidelines. For example, one conference served $16 muffins while another served Beef Wellington hors d’oeuvres that cost $7.32 per serving. Coffee and tea at the events cost between $0.62 and $1.03 an ounce. At the $1.03 per-ounce price, an 8 ounce cup of coffee would have cost $8.24."

"The inspector-general's report also says some of the conferences featured costly meals, refreshments, and themed breaks "that we believe were indicative of wasteful or extravagant spending -- especially when service charges, taxes, and indirect costs are factored into the actual price paid for food and beverages. For example, with these other charges, the Office on Violence Against Women spent $76 per person on the 'Mission Dolores' lunch for 65 people at the Enhancing Judicial Skills Workshop in San Francisco, California.

“The report notes that all 10 conferences took place at major hotels that applied service fees -- usually 20 percent -- to the cost of expensive menu items.”

Two paragraphs in today’s Washington Post are especially interesting since the Post reporter first seems to suggest that President Bush is to blame for these outrageous expenditures, but then realizes that at least one of the 10 events occurred in the Obama administration. The Post's Jerry Markon writes:

“Most of the conferences studied were held or planned during the Bush administration, and the report included a May 2009 memo from then-Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden vowing that the Obama administration would crack down on conferences and other “extravagant spending, especially during these challenging financial times.’’

“The event that raised the most eyebrows — the 2009 legal training conference in Washington sponsored by Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review — was held three months after the Ogden memo. It featured 250 assorted muffins for $4,200, or $16.80 apiece, and $2,880 for 300 cookies and brownies, along with various pastries and snacks.”

The Los Angeles Times even tries to justify DoJ's extravagance, writing:

"It's a familiar story: government extravagance in trivial matters. This time it's the revelation that the Justice Department paid $16 apiece for muffins served at a conference. What makes stories like this so popular is that they allow ordinary folks to feel morally superior to public employees (or, better yet, politicians). (emphasis added)

"Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) complained: "The Justice Department appears to be blind to the economic realities our country is facing."  The implication is that buying cheaper muffins -- or muffin tops, as on "Seinfeld" -- would appreciably reduce the deficit or provide more aid for the unemployed. Actually, the practical effect of the overcharging is minuscule. It's the symbolism that matters.

"I know, $16 here, $16 there, and it all adds up to real money. But the price tag covers not only the cost of the muffins but the joyful indignation citizens will experience reading about them."

It seems that even among the political elite, some fat cats live better than others. Sheesh!

Image from FotoSearch, available royalty free.

UPDATE (9/23/11): At the Cato Institute's blog, Cato@Liberty today, Tad DeHaven points out that such examples of "(G)overnment waste actually creates a good opportunity for politicians to feign concern for taxpayers," but adds "a majority of Americans erroneously believe that the federal budget’s imbalances can be fixed by just eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse."