Topic: Haiti Aid

The program opens with historical trivia regarding Sing Sing Prison beginning the practice of fingerprinting prisoners on this day in 1903. A second trivia point notes that in 1812, the first U.S. foreign aid bill was authorized to provide relief for earthquake victims in Haiti and Venezuela.

The conversation with the Haitian driver shifts to the billions of dollars in aid money collected after the 2010 earthquake. The driver alleges that much of the $6 billion in aid was funneled through the Clinton and Bush foundations without reaching the Haitian people. He emphasizes that Bill Clinton is viewed as the primary power player in these dealings rather than Hillary.

The hosts revisit the 2010 Haiti earthquake relief efforts, playing a clip of Reese Witherspoon taking a donation call to illustrate the "insincerity" of celebrity telethons. They cite a report from the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) that criticizes the lack of transparency in how billions of dollars in US aid to Haiti were actually spent.

Reports indicate that very little of the $1.1 billion pledged for Haiti's reconstruction has actually reached the country nine months after the earthquake. The State Department has appointed Thomas C. Adams as a special coordinator, though the hosts note a lack of public information about him. They also mention Wyclef Jean's recent hospitalization and the failure of his presidential bid.

Actor Sean Penn, managing a refugee camp in Port-au-Prince, criticizes the bureaucracy of international aid agencies and the American Red Cross. Penn claims the Red Cross has been out of the medical field for 50 years and is primarily a money-collection operation. He warns that without immediate spending on the Haitian people, the country will become a wasteland despite long-term rebuilding plans.

USAID and the Haitian government are scaling back food distributions to prevent disrupting the local agricultural economy. This policy has resulted in thousands of pounds of frozen Butterball turkeys rotting at airports while residents go hungry. The term "pre-positioning" is identified as new speak for withholding current aid for potential future disasters.

American Red Cross President Gail McGovern defended the organization's lack of a visible presence on the ground in Haiti, citing the logistical difficulty of feeding volunteers and a desire to "psychologically empower" the local Red Cross. Critics point out that the Red Cross has failed to brand its supplies or establish significant tent cities near Port-au-Prince, while the UN has built high-quality facilities for its own staff.

Reports from Port-au-Prince indicate that despite hundreds of millions of dollars in global donations, earthquake survivors continue to live in squalor with minimal medical care. Journalists on the ground describe gangrenous wounds and idle heavy machinery while the rainy season threatens to worsen the humanitarian crisis. The slow pace of reconstruction is contrasted with the high-profile media campaigns led by figures like Bill Clinton and various celebrity organizations.

Scientology "Volunteer Ministers" in yellow shirts reportedly gained access to Haiti, where they offered "healing massages" to earthquake victims. Medical professionals complained that the group interfered with hospital operations, including giving food to patients scheduled for surgery. The ease with which the group entered the country contrasted with the difficulties faced by established aid organizations like Doctors Without Borders.