The American (and Augustan) political system of late, in many ways, operates off of voter apathy and part of that is the fact that voters have a short attention span and the memory of an amoeba.
Politicians, and the governmental staff in their charge, know that their constituents (the public) will have forgotten about an issue come election time, so instead of really attempting to tackle a problem, they mix up a good word salad for the public to digest and then go back to their real day job: fundraising.
Does anyone remember the $25,000 that went missing from the Tax Commissioners Office back in 2010? Not hardly. Did we ever get a full accounting of misspent SPLOST money in regard to disgraced and jailed former Commissioner Sammie Sias? Nope.
Back in March of 2022, The Augusta Press discovered that the city owed over $2 million to the IRS plus interest and other fees the feds like to tack on.
The penalty was assessed because the city did not file the proper annual documentation related to The Affordable Care Act, according to several sources within the city government.
As usual, the various departments involved formed a circular firing squad and managed not to hit a single target. No one ever admitted blame for the disastrous oversight and the taxpayers remain on the hook.
That bill has never been paid, nor has the commission even held a meeting on the subject in months and God only knows how much that penalty figure has grown due to virtually everyone in government sticking their head in the sand and pretending the bill doesn’t exist.
In May of 2022, I an article that warned everyone of the condition of the Boathouse at the Marina. Despite badgering by several members of the commission, the city has continued to turn a blind eye to that entire area.
Now there is plenty of evidence that show that gangs have basically claimed the area. “Businesses” without a valid lease squat in the city-owned buildings and the entire atmosphere feels unsafe, if you have kids in tow and are not packing heat yourself. People are scared to be in a vulnerable position putting their boats in at the Marina when violence might randomly occur.
I would label the recent murder during an unlicensed street party as Exhibit A; first, the city quit cutting the grass and let the Boathouse go to seed and then threw up their arms in frustration as the thugs rolled in.
The much ballyhooed “audit” on the Recreation Department was approved shortly after Director Maurice McDowell resigned in February of 2024 and I am told that it only recently got under way. At this rate, a final report should be available for our great-grandchildren to read in 2075.
Even having the FBI show up unannounced and begin rifling through file cabinets hasn’t shaken the government out of it’s complacency.
Of course, we come to the bow-tied elephant sitting in the corner of the room munching on Doritos: Hawthorne Welcher.
I believe that it is safe to say that most people reading this would have already sued the city if they were accused of misappropriating $6.5 million when they were not guilty of such a thing and were forced to resign to protect the real culprit.
Instead, Augusta’s favorite clothes horse is hiding out in the back stable uttering nary a neigh.
It might not be much of a surprise, then, to learn that the “audit” that the audit that the commission voted on to trace what happened to that money has not even started yet. See for yourself, request a copy of any contract made with an auditing firm and you will not find one, that’s because they just got around to finding a firm.
This is the modus operandi of the Augusta government. They will stall, stall, stall and then make up more excuses to stall until the media loses interest and the public forgets.
This time, however, the tried and true game of stalling is likely coming to an end. The feds are not playing around and the FBI does not just show up on a whim; hell, they hardly show up when there is a credible tip, but when they do show up, it’s serious, lengthy prison-time serious.
When the FBI shows up, they already know what they are looking for and where to find it.
In my 2013 book, “The Contract on the Government,” I presented the case of how USAID was corrupt from the ground up, and while I recommended it be defunded, I said so on paper that I really didn’t think that would ever happen. The Trump administration proved me wrong.
If the administration has the guts to go after a sacred cow like USAID, which has benefited Democrats and Republicans alike, then they will go after anyone, no matter how large or small the grift.
The discrepancies in Augusta’s Covid relief money was unearthed by the Biden administration, they politely asked for their money back and the city went through the same stalling routine, starting first with the Treasury Department and then with the public.
So far, it appears the city’s machinations have ground to a halt with all the subtlety of a big yellow school bus crash.
Now some conspiracy theorists might assume maybe Donald Trump is getting even with the city of Augusta because the Augusta National hasn’t made him a member, painted the Clubhouse gold and agreed to serve his Trump Chardonnay at the annual Masters Champions Dinner and hit the city with a huge bill, but that is not how the game is played.
When the FBI gets involved, stalling is only going to increase the amount of time on the prison terms.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Investigative Reporter, Editorial Page Editor and weekly columnist for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
