A Billion Here, A Billion There
The Cost of Freedom, The Price of Deception, and DOGE Checks as Punitive Damage
Freedom has a cost, but it is never for sale.
“Find the cost of freedom buried in the ground,” sang Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, lamenting the solemn price paid by American lives in wars. It’s a haunting reminder that the defense of liberty often demands the ultimate sacrifice. Yet today, we face a different kind of theft—not of lives, but of trust and wealth. This theft is perpetrated not by foreign enemies, but by our own government agencies.
The cost of freedom? No. The cost of fraud lies buried in the secret line items of bloated and stinking federal budgets.
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has uncovered billions of wasted taxpayer dollars funneled into dubious projects. In response, the President is considering returning some of these recovered funds directly to the American people, possibly as $5,000 checks per taxpayer.
Ordinarily, I would oppose such payouts as a classic case of robbing Peter to pay Paul (and a whole lot of other disciples). But this one is different. These funds represent restitution, not redistribution; damages owed the American taxpayer for dastardly and despicable misuse of our money. And there are compelling reasons to support the President’s initiative.
Hoodwinked and Divided
The American people have been deceived. Federal bureaucrats haven’t merely pulled the wool over our eyes; they have woven a tapestry of falsehoods. Initiatives branded as “progressive”—from Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs to extravagant climate change projects—haven’t just squandered taxpayer dollars; they’ve torn at the fabric of American unity.
Our national motto, E Pluribus Unum—Out of Many, One—has been inverted by ideologues who fragment us into competing tribes. Both Scripture and Lincoln’s wise application echo through time: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” This calculated division is an act of ideological Balkanization, not merely political disagreement.
This division isn’t confined to policy; it’s cultural vandalism: tearing down statues, renaming military bases, erasing historical legacies. This isn’t about honoring our shared past; it’s about advancing political agendas. In doing so, these bureaucrats violate a sacred trust.
“Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set” (Proverbs 22:28). This is more than a historical caution; it is a moral indictment. By erasing history, they dishonor heritage and distort identity. And they pay for their Socialist strategies with our money.
Given the scale of this cultural assault, I support returning a portion of the recovered funds to the American people. It is not a handout; it is symbolic restitution for the harm inflicted by activist bureaucrats. In fact, it’s more like punitive damages.
The Cost of Corruption and Incompetence
This isn’t merely about financial waste; it’s about broken trust. The bureaucratic state—often called the “fourth branch of government”—has expanded unchecked since FDR’s era, growing under every administration, regardless of party.
But this isn’t mere incompetence. These bureaucrats channeled taxpayer money to causes that actively undermine American values. This is ideological theft on an epic scale. It is cultural engineering financed by public funds.
If returning the savings unearthed by DOGE helps rebuild trust and heal the ideological wounds inflicted by these bureaucrats, then it is not just compensation—it is a moral imperative.
The Moral Case for Restitution
This is not about government handouts. It is about justice. These bureaucrats acted not just irresponsibly but immorally, looting public coffers for ideological gain.
In Johnny Cash’s song, “One Piece at a Time,” the protagonist builds a Cadillac by stealing parts from his factory job. But this is worse. These bureaucrats didn’t steal piecemeal; they handed out Cadillacs daily—not to hardworking Americans but to radical causes.
This organized corruption was carried out not by mobsters but by public servants, so-called, entrusted with taxpayer dollars. If a portion of the recovered funds is returned to the American people, it should be seen as punitive damages—a symbolic act of restitution for an egregious breach of public trust. This is for every honest American citizen who felt hounded and mistreated by the IRS for an underpayment of annual taxes of a few hundred dollars, while a few billion bucks were transferred to Stacey Abrams’ nonprofit to help lower-income people become more climate-change savvy. How terribly corrupt. This is for the veteran family that couldn’t get mental health care for their loved one, and this is for the veteran who lost a limb, lost a family, or just lost hope. How heartbreaking. For the western North Carolinians still living in tents in the mountains, and the myriad other American tragedies that will never be publicized: this is not just a detestable waste of our hard-earned dollars. This is cruelty. Wasting massive amounts of American money on spurious causes while our people suffer is a heinous crime. What unprecedented disrespect for American citizens.
A Debt of Gratitude
Whatever your political affiliation, we owe a debt of gratitude to the President, Mr. Musk, and everyone involved in the DOGE initiative. By exposing this systemic corruption, they haven’t merely uncovered fraud; they might have started the necessary rebuilding of trust in American governance.
I believe the President’s “DOGE dividend payment” proposal isn’t just about financial reimbursement; it’s about reaffirming a foundational principle: government officials work for the American people, not the other way around. If sending a check to every American serves as a tangible reminder of this truth, then it is money well spent.
It is not the cost of freedom, but it is the price of betrayal.
Final Thoughts
To borrow the oft-quoted line from Senator Everett Dirksen, “A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you’re talking real money.” The fiscal irresponsibility uncovered by DOGE isn’t merely economic mismanagement; it appears to give old Al Capone a run for his money.
The proposed DOGE dividend checks aren’t economic relief; they are acts of contrition. They symbolize accountability, restore justice, and pave the way for national healing. At a time when trust in public institutions is at an all-time low, this initiative is a powerful statement that corruption will not go unchallenged.
I’m open to better ideas. But the alarm must be sounded. The scale of corruption exposed by DOGE is akin to finding a fiscal nuclear warhead ticking in our national living room. At some point—gradually and then suddenly—America would wake up to national bankruptcy.
Somebody needs to pay for this mess. And the American taxpayer has paid enough. Returning a portion of these funds as punitive damages feels like something close to justice to me. It’s not the “cost of freedom,” but it may just be the price for looting the American people.
