With this pandemic and everything else going on in Washington, we have multiple choices for stuff to worry about, so I'll just pick one.
In order to head off a recession, or something possibly worse, Congress opened up the U.S. Treasury to the tune of $2 trillion for loans and grants to workers and businesses hurt by this catastrophe. In a bipartisan bill, Congress hammered out the rules, regulations and eligibility requirements for those seeking help.
The Democrats assured us that the bill contained adequate oversight to make sure everything was administered fairly. Fine, except that right after signing it into law, the president claimed his administration could easily sidestep any congressional supervision, and he then fired the inspector general who was supposed to become the watchdog over the whole thing. I assume he'll be replaced by yet another Trump sycophant.
I would like to say something to the guys who represent our state in the federal government: We didn't send you to Washington to create a $2 trillion Trump reelection slush fund. He has intimated many times in the past that, "If you're nice to Trump, Trump will be nice to you." That's an invitation for political corruption if I've ever heard one. I would remind the North Dakota delegation that this two trillion is our money, or maybe I should say it's our, our children's, and our grandkid's debt.
I hope I'm speaking for more than myself when I say we expect you to get something down on paper that assures transparency and the absolute honesty of this transaction. This is a lot of money and you guys have the responsibility to make sure it's properly disbursed.
