04/04/2020
After many years as a fraud prosecutor with the DOJ, I have been waiting for the red flags of fraud and profiteering to pop up that show that someone is manipulating the shortage of PPE in supply system to increase the profits of politically connected private companies. Yesterday, Ret. Gen. Russell Honore, the former Hurricane Katrina response co-ordinator, said on NBC news that "something politically has happened" so that FEMA has changed its operating procedures to facilitate the return of federally purchased supplies via the air bridge to private companies for them to sell on the open market to the highest bidder "at up to 7X the price." He called it a "Saturday morning flea market" which is preventing these much needed supplies from reaching those who need them most. To make this happen, the The Defense Production Act has deliberately not been invoked and "something is terribly wrong" Gen Honore said. You bet "something is wrong" for those of us at increased risk of dying, but this scheme is working just fine for those who are making money off it.
