This Festivus Is Not For The Rest Of Us

“Festivus for the rest of us” is a phrase that refers to a holiday popularized in a hilarious 1997 Seinfeld episode of the same name. The holiday is celebrated on December 23rd as an alternative to Christmas and is characterized by: 

Decorating with a metal pole: Instead of a Christmas tree, a plain metal pole is decorated as a Festivus tree. (George’s Dad, Frank Costanza, explains that he finds tinsel distracting.)

Family members express their grievances about feeling let down by one another throughout the year.

Wrestling: Physical wrestling is an important aspect of Festivus.

For several years, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has used the name for an end-of-year report he compiles on government waste. This year’s report once again highlights the absurd waste of taxpayer dollars.

This year, Biden’s administration managed to waste over $1 Trillion of taxpayer’s money. That isn’t money spent; this is essentially money that has been wasted through inefficiency and useless projects.

One of the most shocking examples of inefficiency that Paul discovered was that the federal government spent an astonishing $10 billion on maintaining, leasing, and furnishing government buildings that are nearly entirely empty. That is taxpayer money being thrown out the window because of lazy inefficiency.

Sen. Paul’s report reveals that 17 out of 24 federal agencies utilize only 25 percent or less of their office space. In fact, even the busiest offices barely reach 50 percent capacity.

The report states:

“The federal government spent $10 billion on maintaining, leasing, and furnishing almost entirely empty buildings. As the average American taxpayers struggle to pay rent, their hard-earned dollars are ironically funneled into more real estate.”

The numbers are enough to infuriate any fiscal conservative: $2 billion spent annually on maintenance costs, plus an additional $5 billion on leases for buildings that primarily serve as costly storage units for empty desks. The remaining $3 billion is allocated to furnishing and operating these vacant spaces. This waste has been worsened by the widespread adoption of remote work policies following the coronavirus pandemic. However, Paul’s report indicates that this issue existed long before COVID-19.

The report highlights how “Most federal offices are ghost towns.” However, the bureaucratic establishment has not adapted to evolving workplace realities while still demanding full funding for unused facilities.

Still, the wasted building maintenance scandal is only the beginning. If you thought that was concerning, wait until you hear this: The same report revealed several other instances of questionable spending, including:

$419,470 for a study on whether lonely rats seek cocaine more than happy rats.

 $12 million for a Las Vegas pickleball complex.

$10,000 for an ice-skating drag show.

$20 million for a Sesame Street spin-off in Iraq.

The report reveals that:

“Despite American taxpayers providing nearly $174 billion in aid and military assistance to Kyiv since the beginning of Russia’s war in Ukraine, someone over at State thought it was a brilliant idea to drop an additional $4.8 Million for ‘KYIV, Ukraine public affairs – Influencer Staff.”

Indeed, the U.S. government has funded Ukrainian TikTokers and Instagram influencers, amounting to $4.8 million.

Oh, and bewildered Joe’s puppeteers spent $2.1 Million on Paraguay’s border security while ignoring our borders and watching the crisis in our country escalate.

Thankfully, hope is on the way. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. This department is essential because, without strict oversight, it is evident that too much money is wasted irresponsibly.

In the report, Paul wrote:

“As Congress spends to reward its favored pet projects, the American taxpayers are forced to pay through high prices and crippling interest rates. Last Festivus, we bemoaned the national debt nearing $34 trillion. In just a year, Washington’s career politicians and bureaucrats have managed to push it beyond $36 trillion – unsurprisingly, with hardly a second thought.”

Addressing this issue involves more than simply identifying waste; it requires a fundamental reform of government operations. As more Americans become aware of these fiscal abuses, there is growing pressure for concrete actions to safeguard taxpayer dollars and restore responsible governance.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration continues to call for more funding and higher taxes so federal bureaucrats can recklessly spend billions of dollars in ways that are totally against fiscal responsibility.

Thankfully, this administration’s stranglehold on the nation’s purse strings is coming to an end—an ending that can’t come soon enough.