Quin Hillyer – Continuing a multi-year battle to save misspent taxpayer dollars, Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa on Tuesday demanded to know why the U.S. Treasury has recovered so little of the money wasted by federal officials from a housing program gone awry.

The IG found that $11 million had been spent not to help victims but instead “wasted on restaurant meals, employee gifts and a $500 per month company Mercedes.” Despite the report, the Treasury has recovered only $113,592 of the $11 million – just barely over 1 percent of the mal-spent funds. Grassley long has championed the causes of federal whistleblowers and departmental Inspectors General (IGs). In this case, the Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), which was created during the housing/financial crisis late last decade, had unearthed large levels of wrongful spending in the Hardest Hit Fund (HHF), a kitty meant to directly help homeowners hurt during the crisis.

“There should be an appropriate measure of accountability,” Grassley wrote to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, “including potential disciplinary action.” Continue reading →