Metro Rail Expenditures

Tutor thinks that we taxpayers should repay him $354,926 in what he calls overhead expenses for liquor, football tickets, plane tickets for non-business-related travel, tax payments to the IRS, donations to political campaigns, nonprofit organizations and USC, racetrack turf club privileges, and “exclusive physical training.” Auditors are challenging other sizable claims as well.

Reacting to these challenges to his claims, Tutor says, “It’s nobody’s goddamned business.” It makes one wish for a personal chat out behind the barn with Tutor regarding his presumption of access to other people’s money.

However, Tutor’s expectations may have been raised somewhat if he happened to talk much to McSpedon. McSpedon tells us that he doesn’t lose any sleep over these overhead expense claims because “In terms of how much impact it has on us, our cost of doing business and on the taxpayers, it’s not a lot of money.” Any public money improperly spent is a lot of money.

S.O. COFFMAN

Claremont