“Instead of clowns and mind readers, we’ve got violinists and guitarists — GSA has really classed up their act,” he said in a statement. “We’ve known that there is a culture of waste, fraud and abuse within the many layers of GSA, and this proves that this is a systemic problem that is rooted deeply within this organization.”
April 16, 2012: Witnesses prepare to testify on Capitol Hill about GSA spending. The former agency commissioner Jeff Neely is third from the left.
The inspector general for the scandal-plagued General Services Administration has launched an investigation into a $270,000 awards ceremony held in suburban Washington — the latest pricey gala to draw outrage from lawmakers.
The GSA apparently spent thousands of dollars on hors d’oeuvres, goodie-bag items and travel costs for the one-day ceremony in November 2010. The ceremony was held shortly after GSA hosted a now-infamous Las Vegas conference that led to a shakeup at the agency.
In a press conference Thursday on the probe, House Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica, R-Fla., said the discovery “makes everyone’s blood boil.”
“The committee is appalled,” he said.
In a letter obtained by Fox News, Inspector General Brian Miller told Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif., whose subcommittee has jurisdiction over the GSA, that he’s investigating the 2010 awards ceremony — which was held across the river from the nation’s capital in Arlington, Va. The matter had been referred to Miller’s office by acting GSA chief Dan Tangherlini.
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