The Bush Administration Spent Billions on an Iraqi Army With 50,000 ‘Ghost’ Soldiers

Juan Cole / Truthdig Dec 1, 2014 Iraqi Prime Minister Haydar al-Abadi announced to his parliament Sunday that inspectors had uncovered 50,000 nonexistent soldiers in four divisions of the Iraqi army. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Parenting

Signe Wilkinson / Truthdig Apr 12, 2014 Dig deeper

As Parents Struggle to Repay College Loans for Their Children, Taxpayers Also Stand to Lose

Staff / Truthdig Apr 8, 2014 New Department of Education data show rising default rates on federal loans to parents. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Are Students Dropping Out of College to Become Entrepreneurs?

Staff / Truthdig Feb 27, 2014 Universities are working hard to keep their students in the classroom rather than out starting their own business; private prisons receive tons of taxpayer dollars but can operate under secrecy; meanwhile, anti-terrorist agencies try to entrap activists to demonstrate that the policing organizations are needed. These discoveries and more after the jump. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Elizabeth Warren’s Bill Could Mean Billions for Taxpayers

Donald Kaufman / Truthdig Jan 14, 2014 Sen. Elizabeth Warren has teamed up with Republican Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma to introduce a bill that takes aim at the efficacy and malfeasance of government settlements on corporate wrongdoing and could bring billions of dollars back to taxpayers. If corporations have the same rights as people, then they should have to suffer the same consequences. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Flood Insurance

Signe Wilkinson / Truthdig Nov 3, 2013 Dig deeper

Lessons for Texas Schoolkids: Loch Ness Monster Proves Evolution Is Wrong

BLANK Oct 25, 2013 Christian-affiliated public charter schools in Texas are teaching some whoppers in the classroom. Note the phrase "public charter schools." Yes, tax money is being spent to spread ignorance, such as linking the rise of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich to Darwinism. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Taxpayer Money Used to Cover PRISM Compliance Costs

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Aug 23, 2013 Top-secret material passed to The Guardian shows that the National Security Agency paid millions of dollars to help major Internet companies such as Google, Microsoft and Facebook cover the cost of certification for participating in the PRISM surveillance program. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Taxpayer Attempts Sequestration

RJ Matson, Cagle Cartoons, Roll Call Apr 15, 2013 Dig deeper

The Sports Tax

David Sirota / Truthdig Feb 9, 2013 That term -- Sports Tax -- is not hyperbolic. In a week that saw Louisiana fork over $5 million to the NFL for the privilege of helping that league make big Super Bowl money, Sports Tax is the most accurate catch-all label for the four sets of levies the public is being made to shell out. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Preserve Benefits: Cut Gouging and Inequities

Ralph Nader Nov 15, 2012 Congress is still talking about a “Grand Bargain” that “balances” far more spending cuts than tax increases. That is another way of saying that you – the consumer of Medicare and Medicaid services, the recipient of Social Security, and the average taxpayer -- will take the brunt of the spending cuts. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Why Freddie Mac Resisted Refis

By Jesse Eisinger, ProPublica Oct 26, 2012 Freddie Mac, the taxpayer-owned mortgage giant, made it harder for millions of Americans to refinance their high-interest-rate mortgages for fear it would cut into company profits, present and former Freddie Mac officials disclosed in recent interviews. Dig deeper ( 8 Min. Read )