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Amtrak IG: Important Background

When this was first reported in 2006, it seemed to be a serious scandal:

A recent probe into Amtrak's legal department by the Department of Transportation's inspector general and Amtrak's inspector general at the request of Congress found more than $100 million in mismanaged legal fees from June 2002 to June 2005. According to the report, released on Oct. 25, Amtrak was billed more than $40 million by 10 law firms. The report found that those firms submitted bills with vague time sheets, inappropriately billed for secretarial or administrative work and billed at rates that may not have adhered to typical government-discounted rates.

That was before Eleanor Acheson was hired as Amtrak's general counsel. But after the Democrats took over Congress in January 2007, everyone seems to have lost interest in what went on in the legal department before Acheson's arrival. Until last month, when IG Fred Wiederhold submitted a 94-page legal report -- and then immediately retired.

Now, questions are being asked on Capitol Hill. As I reported Tuesday, the Republicans who are asking the questions have begun to wonder if their Democratic counterparts are equally determined to get answers to those questions. And then there was this headline in the Washington Post last week:

Financial Agency IGs Say Bill Threatens Independence

The bill was sponsored by Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.), chairman of the House Democratic Congress. A little background on Larson.

Comments

Pingback| 7.17.09 @ 8:01AM

Instapundit » Blog Archive » MORE ON the Amtrak Inspector General scandal…. links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

Podcasts About FAQ Other Writings PDA Terms of Use Backup RSS Advertise « MICHAEL MOYNIHAN: Is Barbara Boxer the Orville Faubus of the Climate Committee?… July 17, 2009 MORE ON the Amtrak Inspector General scandal. Posted at by Glenn Reynolds at 8:01 am Get the Pajamas TV - V2.0 widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox! Sic gorgiamus allos subjectatos nunc! Making even the dumbest sh**…

SenatorMark4| 7.17.09 @ 8:44AM

Transparency without disclosure! I think we can all see what's going on but when government is allowed to hide it's actions in bank accounts with no public scrutiny what, exactly, to you expect? In one day we could be privy to all this if a law was passed that all government bank accounts were required to have an anonymous read-only login. Unlikely because YOU don't care.

Bob Belvedere| 7.17.09 @ 11:49PM

Linked to at:
http://www.thecampofthesaints.com/2009.07.12_arch.html#1247887923619
and at:
http://www.thecampofthesaints.com/wwuam.html#unwelcome_distractions

Pingback| 7.20.09 @ 8:06AM

Behind Closed Doors | America Watches Obama links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…endured from some Democrats three years ago, one veteran Washington journalist told me last week, Lieberman “don’t owe those people squat.” ********* PREVIOUSLY: July 17: Amtrak IG: Important Background July 14: IG-Gate: Sincere Doubts July 14: The Little Scandal That Could July 9: Democrats Question AmeriCorps Official’s Stonewall on IG Case July 1: Malkin on IG-Gate: Does the…

lingerie wholesale| 7.26.09 @ 8:40PM

yes, maybe in one day we could be privy to all this if a law was passed that all government bank accounts were required to have an anonymous read-only login.

NFL jerseys| 9.2.09 @ 11:13PM

It is a wonderful article,I like it!Welcome to read following news: NFL jerseys,Photoshop CS2,ghd Hair Straightener,Adobe Photoshop CS4.

Pingback| 9.15.09 @ 11:35AM

The Greenroom » Forum Archive » IG-Gate Update: Questions on Capitol Hill links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…Are Important July 21: IG-Gate: Democratic Staffers ‘Useless’ in Investigations, SayRepublicans July 20: IG-Gate: Connecting the SIGTARP Dots July 20: Behind Closed Doors July 17: Amtrak IG: Important Background July 14: IG-Gate: Sincere Doubts July 14: The Little Scandal That Could July 9: Democrats Question AmeriCorps Official’s Stonewall on IG Case July 1: Malkin on IG-Gate: Does the…

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