Vermont auditor: MIT economist may have padded bills to state for work on new health system
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The Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist who made national headlines last year for talking about "the stupidity of the American voter" is a target of a Vermont state audit that suggests the economist may have padded bills for economic modeling work on a proposed Vermont health system.
Auditor of Accounts Douglas Hoffer offers as evidence Jonathan Gruber's bills for 1,000 hours of work in 10 weeks by a research assistant. The attorney general says Hoffer raises "serious questions."
Gruber says Monday he doesn't wish to comment.
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Gruber was an adviser to the Obama administration on the federal Affordable Care Act, when he once said that voter stupidity and a "lack of transparency" helped get the legislation passed. He later apologized repeatedly, saying his comments were uninformed "and sometimes downright insulting."