Taxpayer Watchdog Group Joins the Hunt`

[Guest guest]

===== A message from the 'makahwhaling' discussion list =====

 

FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE

-

 

TAXPAYER ADVOCACY GROUP ON THE SCENT!

" Unconscionable " waste of tax dollars in Makah hunt

 

We are very pleased to announce the involvement of the Citizens Against

Government Waste (CAGW) in the ongoing Makah whale hunt. This hunt has

directly cost American taxpayers over $4 million dollars, and tens of

thousands of dollars more are thrown away each day.

 

The Washington Citizen's Coastal Alliance applauds the CAGW for taking an

active role in investigating this shameful abuse of tax dollars, and

encourages all of you to thank them for their support! Please read the

following information regarding CAGW as well a brief statement they have

released regarding the Makah whale hunt. Contact info for CAGW follows their

statement.

*****

 

 

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) is a 600,000 member, private,

non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated to educating Americans about

the waste, mismanagement, and inefficiency in the federal government.

Founded in 1984 by the late industrialist J. Peter Grace and syndicated

columnist Jack Anderson, CAGW is the legacy of the President's Private

Sector Survey on Cost Control, also known as the Grace Commission.

 

In 1982, President Reagan directed the Grace Commission to " work like

tireless bloodhounds to root out government inefficiency and waste of tax

dollars. " For two years, 161 corporate executives and community leaders led

an army of 2,000 volunteers on a waste hunt through the federal government.

The search was funded entirely by voluntary contributions of $76 million

from the private sector; it cost taxpayers nothing. The Grace Commission

made 2,478 recommendations which, if implemented, would save $424.4 billion

over three years, an average of $141.5 billion a year - all without

eliminating essential services.

 

The 47 volumes and 21,000 pages of the Grace Report constitute a vision of

an efficient, well-managed government that is accountable to the taxpayers.

CAGW has worked to make that vision a reality and, in a little over a

decade, has helped save taxpayers $486 billion through implementation of

Grace Commission findings and other recommendations.

 

Former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole has stated, " CAGW researches and

identifies the most blatant waste in government and shows how it can be

eliminated. CAGW has a long and successful record of winning major cuts in

wasteful spending without sacrificing America's defenses. "

 

House Republican Policy Committee Chairman Christopher Cox (R-Calif.) went

even further: " CAGW has fought side-by-side with us for welfare reform and

massive cuts in wasteful spending to shrink the size of government and the

deficit. " Rep. Cox called CAGW " the premier waste-fighting organization in

America. "

 

CAGW's membership has grown from 5,000 members in February 1988 to 600,000

today. This phenomenal growth is the result of the taxpayers' increasing

frustration with the squandering of their hard-earned money in the nation's

capital.

 

CAGW is nationally recognized as the source of information on government

waste. CAGW representatives appear frequently on commercial and public

television, radio talk shows, and in print.

 

CAGW produces numerous publications highlighting wasteful government

spending. Government WasteWatch is the group's quarterly newspaper, which is

distributed to members of CAGW, members of Congress, and members of the

media nationwide. The annual Congressional Pig Book Summary is the famous

exposé of the most glaring and irresponsible uses of taxpayer dollars for

pork-barrel spending. CAGW's lobbying arm, the Council for Citizens Against

Government Waste, tabulates its annual Congressional Ratings, measuring the

willingness of each member of Congress to fight government waste and reduce

the federal deficit.

*****

 

 

STATEMENT FROM CITIZENS AGAINST GOVERNMENT WASTE

---

 

" The Makah Whale Hunt off the coast of Washington state is an unconscionable

waste of tax dollars. Citing Makah Indian 'tradition,' one arm of the

federal government is teaching Makah Indians to kill whales while a separate

arm of the government is spending money to protect these

mammals. Even worse, the tradition is so lost to history that there are not

any living Makah Indians that even remember how to hunt whales. The United

States Coast Guard is spending an estimated $11,550 an hour to escort the

Makah whale killers to try and revive this long lost tradition.

 

CAGW supports taxpayer efforts to stop this unnecessary expenditure of tax

dollars. "

-------------

 

Citizens Against Government Waste

1301 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Fourth Floor

Washington, DC 20036-1838

Phone (202) 467-5300 Fax (202) 467-4253

http://www.cagw.org

*****

 

 

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