Illegals get tax rewards for reproducing

From Fox 5:

Undocumented workers in the US collected $4.2 billion in a certain tax credit last year, up from less than $1 billion five years ago, according to a new audit by the Treasury Department's Inspector General for Tax Administration revealed Friday.

The report looked only at a tax benefit known as the Additional Child Tax Credit, a refundable credit meant for working families. The audit found that as a result of vague US law -- as well as an expansion of the tax credit in stimulus legislation and other measures -- the number of illegal workers collecting the money has skyrocketed.

The inspector general's office expressed concern about the trend and urged the IRS and Treasury Department to determine once and for all whether that money should be paid out.

"The payment of federal funds through this tax benefit appears to provide an additional incentive for aliens to enter, reside and work in the United States without authorization, which contradicts federal law and policy to remove such incentives," the report said.

So much for that...

From the NY Post:

The White House plan to save as many as 13 million cash-strapped families from losing their homes in foreclosure was a huge flop -- so flawed it may have made the housing crisis even worse.

That's the finding in a blistering report yesterday by the Congressional Oversight Panel, which spent a year examining why the Treasury's $30 billion rescue effort never made a dent in the housing crisis and probably created more problems.

The panel cited a litany of blunders and missteps that slipped through the highest levels of Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's team, which then tried to cover up the shortcomings of the failed rescue program, known as Home Affordable Modification Program, or HAMP.

The safety-net program was meant to help homeowners and lenders revise mortgages and make monthly payments more manageable.

But barely 700,000 families expect to benefit from the nearly two-year old plan -- a small portion of the 8 million to 13 million families targeted-- while the $30 billion rescue pot remains largely unused. Just $4 billion has been spent thus far.

"Many of the problems plaguing HAMP are inherent in its design and cannot be resolved at this time," the panel aid.

It added that "Treasury's reluctance to acknowledge HAMP's shortcomings has had real consequences" and that "many billions of dollars set aside for foreclose mitigation may well be left unused."

The panel said the clock ran out Oct. 3 for Geithner to revise his bungled program, leaving the US stuck with a wasteful and useless effort while foreclosures rise.

BYE, BYE BLOOMBERG?

From Business & Media Institute:

With what appears to be a devastating election looming for his party, is President Obama attempting to follow in the footsteps of one of his predecessors and moderate toward the center?

Not if choosing Pete Rouse to replace chief of staff Rahm Emanuel is any indication, according to CNBC’s Larry Kudlow. On the Oct. 1 broadcast of “The Call,” CNBC Washington correspondent John Harwood predicted Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner wasn’t going anywhere, but Obama would take a pro-business tack with the leadership of Department of Commerce.

However, Kudlow, citing a “deep political insider,” had a different forecast.

“The Commerce thing is a great idea and you're probably going to be right, but I know that you don't hear this,” Kudlow said. “But I had dinner last night with a deep political insider who told me that Michael Bloomberg is the next Treasury secretary. I heard that. All I'll say is this is a serious insider who said the deal has been done and that Bloomberg is the next Treasury secretary.”

If true, Bloomberg is an interesting choice, but he’s hardly a conservative.

If true, I'm throwing a fucking party!

Thanks, Suzannah.