In 1986, Gaston and Monique Roberge, a couple in their seventies, had a contract to sell their retirement nest egg, a 2.8-acre vacant lot. But the Army Corps of Engineers claimed that the lot included wetland and unapproved fill. The fill predated the Clean Water Act under which the Corps claims to regulate wetlands, and wetland preservation is never mentioned in that Act. But the Corps harassed the Roberges for years, denying permits and demanding dirt removal costing $100,000—as much as the land was worth. In 1991 the Roberges got help from the Maryland-based Fairness to Landowners Committee, which turned up a July 1987 memo from Army Corps officer Jay Clement that stated: "Roberge would be a good one to squash and set an example." Clement signed himself "Maytag Repairman," suggesting he was underworked and bored. Faced with this evidence, the federal government provided $338,000 to the Roberges in settlement of a lawsuit they brought against the Army Corps of Engineers. It is worth remembering that the activities of the Army Corps of Engineers and the compensation of the Roberges both came from taxpayer funds.

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