Watchdog.org Podcast

Breaking The Bank is Watchdog.org’s weekly look at the national public pension crisis, how it’s affecting state and city budgets and what can be done — if anything — to fix it. In this week’s episode, hosts Eric Boehm and Steve Greenhut take a break from the pension beat to reflect on the crisis that unfolded over the past two weeks in Baltimore. Everything that there is to say about the protests and riots has already been said, but we turn our focus to another aspect of the city - one that is literally breaking the bank: failed economic development projects that bring tourists and riches to a small part of the city while the rest of Baltimore struggles. Does the city really need to own a $300 million hotel (which lost $5 million last year, alone) or spend $2 billion to redevelop the Inner Harbor while neighborhoods and schools are struggling?  It's not a problem that is unique to Baltimore - politicians everywhere choose white elephant projects over basic city services - bu