Stimulus Money Used to Fund Questionable Television Ads

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) has been reporting on the many ways that money through The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (aka Stimulus Bill) has been spent.  In 2011, TPA Senior Fellow Drew Johnson wrote about The Miccosukee Corporation, the business arm of the Miccosukee Indian Tribe, which pocketed a $20,785 stimulus handout to subsidize a summer youth employment program. The program hired five kids to perform jobs including cashier, handyman and alligator wrestler at the Tribe’s Miccosukee Indian Village (read full story here).  As first reported by The Washington Times on Tuesday August 21, 2012, and subsequently by Fox News on August 22, taxpayers funded a $495,000 stimulus grant to purchase ads on MSNBC to promote green jobs training.  According to The Washington Times article, “Spending reports under the federal Recovery Act show $495,000 paid to McNeely Pigott & Fox Public Relations LLC, which the Labor Department hired to raise awareness ‘among employers and influencers about the [Job Corps] program’s existing and new training initiatives in high growth and environmentally friendly career areas’ as well as spreading the word to prospective Job Corps enrollees.  The firm ultimately negotiated ad buys for ‘two approved spots’ airing 14 times per week for two months on ‘Countdown With Keith Olbermann’ and ‘The Rachel Maddow Show,’ according to a project report, which listed the number zero under a section of the report asking how many jobs had been created through the stimulus contract.”

When the stimulus bill was passed, President Obama promised that unemployment would not eclipse 8 percent. In fact, months after the bill was passed unemployment went above 10 percent.  Today, unemployment is at 8.3 percent with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reporting that the true number may actually be 14.5 percent.  The Department of Labor has admitted that this $495,000 grant created ZERO jobs.

Taxpayers should not be forced to pay for political ads that they disagree with.  According to The Washington Times report, “In a joint email statement to The Times from two Labor Department spokesmen, David Roberts and Michael Volpe, officials said the money was used for outreach efforts to raise awareness among potential employers about the Job Corps’ green training in career areas, including automotive, advanced manufacturing and solar-panel installation.”  It appears that the administration may be trying to create another Solyndra with these funds.

When the stimulus bill was passed and signed into law, skeptics were chided for their cynicism about the potential effects of the bill.  As more and more stories surface about the waste it is clear that the bill should have never passed and the skeptics were correct.  The only thing that was “shovel-ready” about this grant was the propaganda that was being shoveled to the viewers of MSNBC.