The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“THE MUFFIN MAN” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H6347 on Sept. 22, 2011.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
THE MUFFIN MAN
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) for 5 minutes.
Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, do you know the muffin man, the muffin man, the muffin man? Yes, I know the muffin man, but he doesn't live on Drury Lane. He lives at the Department of Justice on Justice Lane and is growing rich on selling $16 muffins at Justice Lane.
The Department of Justice's inspector general states that at only 10 conferences the Department of Justice spent almost $500,000 on refreshments. That's $50,000 per conference for just refreshments. And that includes $4,200 for 250 muffins.
Madam Speaker, how come these critters cost $16 apiece? These are some high-dollar muffins that the Department of Justice is buying for its refreshments at conferences. Where do you even find a muffin that costs $16? I've never seen one. Maybe they're shipped in from a special bakery in France with some secret ingredient. My favorite bakery, RAO's in Beaumont, Texas, tells me these things should be about $2 apiece.
So why is the Justice Department with all those fancy lawyers letting the muffin man get away with this price gouging? Because the government doesn't care. It lives high on the hog with taxpayers' money.
So, Madam Speaker, do you know the muffin man, the muffin man? I know the muffin man, and the government should quit spending somebody else's money to keep the muffin man rolling in the dough.
And that's just the way it is.
____________________
