U.S. Census Swag Not Made In The USA

In order to reach out to low-reporting communities like Chicago, the U.S. Census Bureau gives out promotional items like t-shirts and hats at a cost of about $340 million. Unfortunately, that money isn't spent on products made in the USA. According to the Sun Times, a dozen boxes that came to Alderman Ed Burke's office contained apparel made in China, Bangladesh and Haiti.

Calling the outsourcing "preposterous," Alderman Burke said "It's amazing the bureau would condone such a thing when there is a 13 percent unemployment rate in the United States and 50 percent in some neighborhoods." Chicago AFL-CIO president Dennis Gannon jumped on the issue as well, saying "It's hard to believe the bureaucracy of the federal government would not be sensitive to the concerns of the average citizen."

rest at http://chicagoist.com/2010/04/13/us_census_swag_not_made_in_the_usa.php