{"id":2524344,"date":"2025-12-23T14:25:02","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T19:25:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pauls-annual-festivus-report-calls-out-1-6-trillion-in-government-waste\/"},"modified":"2025-12-23T14:28:52","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T19:28:52","slug":"pauls-annual-festivus-report-calls-out-1-6-trillion-in-government-waste","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pauls-annual-festivus-report-calls-out-1-6-trillion-in-government-waste\/","title":{"rendered":"Paul&#8217;s annual Festivus report calls out $1.6 trillion in government waste"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpauls-annual-festivus-report-calls-out-1-6-trillion-in-government-waste%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2524344&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) released his 11th annual &#8220;Festivus Report,&#8221; accusing Washington of more than $1.6 trillion in wasteful spending. He says $1.22 trillion of that total is interest on the national debt and highlights quirky and controversial items &#8211; from alleged Veterans Affairs spending on ferret-related programs to $14.6 million for monkeys in a Price Is Right-style game, multimillion-dollar experiments on beagles, and an NIH study dosing puppies with cocaine. Paul praised President Trump&#8217;s 2025 cuts to USAID that cancelled $5 billion in foreign aid but called it &#8220;a drop in the bucket,&#8221; noting other examples like a $20 billion bailout for Argentina and continued global health waivers. The report frames these findings as an &#8220;Airing of (Spending) Grievances&#8221; in the Festivus tradition popularized by Seinfeld and follows last year&#8217;s report that flagged roughly $1 trillion in waste. Paul&#8217;s fiscal stance has at times put him at odds with fellow Republicans, including conflict with Trump over government shutdown votes.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Paul&rsquo;s annual Festivus report calls out $1.6 trillion in government waste<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2453581\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/rand-paul\/\">Rand Paul <\/a>(R-KY) released his annual &ldquo;Festivus Report&rdquo; on Tuesday, spotlighting over $1.6 trillion in <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/government-waste\/\">wasteful government<\/a> spending.<\/p>\n<p>Between discovering Veterans Affairs cash spent on teaching teenage ferrets how to binge drink to discovering $14.6 million spent on having monkeys play a <em>Price Is Right<\/em>-like video game, the Kentucky fiscal hawk bared all the quirky government <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/waste-and-fraud\/\">waste<\/a> on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4356566\/ben-sasse-stage-four-pancreatic-cancer-diagnosis-death-sentence\/\">Ben Sasse announces Stage 4 pancreatic cancer diagnosis: &#8216;It&#8217;s a death sentence&#8217;<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4355776\/travel-scams-alliance-battle-new-hampshire-senate-seat\/\">Travel scams create&nbsp;unlikely alliance amid battle for New Hampshire Senate seat<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4355594\/mcconnell-shaheen-bipartisan-whacks-biden-trump-ukraine-strategies\/\">McConnell and Shaheen take bipartisan whacks at Biden and Trump over Ukraine strategies<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;No matter how much taxpayer money Washington burns through, politicians can&rsquo;t help but demand more. Fiscal responsibility may not be the most crowded road, but it&rsquo;s one I&rsquo;ve walked year after year &mdash; and this holiday season will be no different. So, before we get to the Feats of Strength, it&rsquo;s time for my Airing of (Spending) Grievances,&rdquo; Paul wrote in the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hsgac.senate.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/FESTIVUS-2025-FINAL.pdf\">report<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;\">The report is a government savings spoof on the Dec. 23rd anti<\/span>-commercialism, secular holiday popularized by Frank Costanza on&nbsp;<em>Seinfeld<\/em>. Paul&rsquo;s 2025 Festivus report is his 11th edition of the spending report card.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Congress keeps shoveling money toward pet projects and special interests while hardworking Americans pay the price through inflation and crushing interest rates &ndash; even after President [Donald] Trump took action to end most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-approves-temporary-lift-of-debt-ceiling-averts-default\/\" title=\"...ate Approves Temporary Lift of Debt Ceiling, Averts Default\">foreign aid programs<\/a>,&rdquo; Paul said.<\/p>\n<p>After the Trump administration slashed the U.S. Agency for International Development in 2025, Paul applauded Trump&rsquo;s move to cancel $5 billion in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-make-abortion-a-top-foreign-policy-priority\/\" title=\"Democrats Make Abortion a Top Foreign Policy Priority\">foreign aid funding<\/a>, but said it was &ldquo;just a drop in the bucket.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I am BACK, and I&rsquo;m ready to air more grievances against government waste, Congress, Fauci, endless wars, foreign aid, and many, many others.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RandPaul\/status\/2003529343272948055?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 23, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>In his <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/opinion\/3268603\/rand-paul-2024-festivus-report\/\">2024 report<\/a>, Paul pointed to government spending on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rand-pauls-2024-festivus-report-border-security-for-paraguay-cocaine-rats-and-drag-queen-ice-skating-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"...\u2019s 2024 \u2018...\u2019: Border security for Paraguay, cocaine rats, and drag queen ice-skating - Washington Examiner\">ice-skating drag queens<\/a> and Ukrainian influencers that led to just over $1 trillion in waste. This year, that number boosted to $1.6 trillion, with $1.22 trillion of that being interest payments on the national debt, according to Paul.<\/p>\n<p>He pointed to other projects that persisted from the 2024 report, such as $13.8 million spent on experiments involving Beagle dogs and $2 million on a National Institutes of Health experiment that doses puppies with cocaine.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4259932\/rand-paul-spurns-vance-2028-endorsement\/\">RAND PAUL SPURNS VANCE 2028 ENDORSEMENT IN FAVOR OF &lsquo;CONSERVATIVE, FREE MARKET&rsquo; CANDIDATE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;From a $20 billion bailout for Argentina to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/defund-the-mandates-gop-demands-an-end-to-mandatory-vaccinations\/\" title=\"DEFUND THE MANDATES: GOP Demands An End To Mandatory Vaccinations\">continued funding<\/a> for global health programs through waivers, Washington found new ways to keep the cash flowing. And with every new handout, the mountain of debt grows even higher,&rdquo; Paul said.<\/p>\n<p>The fiscal hawk ran into murky waters with his party in October, after consistently voting against bills to reopen the government shutdown due to his <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >low government spending values<\/a>. The move drew the ire of Trump, who <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/115391842662459841\">called<\/a> him &ldquo;nasty liddle guy,&rdquo; for voting against his party.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rand Paul&#8217;s Festivus: $1.6T in government waste<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3976,"featured_media":2524345,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/rand-paul.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[69329,49985,38952],"class_list":["post-2524344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-festivus-report","tag-government-waste","tag-rand-paul"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/rand-paul.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2524344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3976"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2524344"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2524344\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2524348,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2524344\/revisions\/2524348"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2524345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2524344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2524344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2524344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}