While waste and California go together like peanut butter and jelly, even this latest example will blow your mind.
City Journal’s Chris Rufo broke an explosive story on Wednesday, revealing how Gavin Newsom’s California somehow spent $114 million on the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing (WAWC) over the course of four years. The crossing features an overpass for animals atop ten lanes of the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills.
The stated goal of the project was to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions by providing safe passage to the animals. The species that were supposed to benefit included the endangered cougars in the area and the monarch butterflies.
During a ceremony announcing the project, Newsom boasted that the state would provide $54 million in funding to complete the crossing. It was supposed to cost $92 million in total, with the remaining funding from private philanthropists.
Officials projected the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing would open in 2025, but now it is over $20 million over budget with no finish in sight. And you can thank good old-fashioned political corruption for it, along with the person in charge of the project, a loony cougar-sweater-wearing ‘environmentalist’ named Beth Pratt, who serves on WAWC’s Partner Leadership Team.
Hellbound and Down 