Exclusive: Conservative Filmmaker James O'Keefe Goes Undercover to Target Census Bureau
June 1, 2010— -- The conservative filmmaker arrested this year for an undercover attempt to tape staffers at a U.S. senator's office said his next target -- the Census Bureau -- is another example of government waste.
James O'Keefe, fresh off sentencing for his role in the attempted sting on Sen. Mary Landrieu's Louisiana office in January, signed up to work for the Census in hopes of exposing what he alleges is the bureau's waste of taxpayer money.
O'Keefe said in an exclusive interview today with "Good Morning America" that he has no plans to stop his undercover operations.
"You're on notice...if you are doing things behind closed doors, we will find you and we will film you," O'Keefe said.
O'Keefe and friend Shaugn Adeleye signed up in May to work for the Census Bureau in New Jersey and Louisiana, respectively.
They each attended paid training courses: O'Keefe earned $18.25 an hour and Adeleye made $13.25 an hour.
The two quit after a few days and, O'Keefe said, his time with the Census Bureau proved his theory that the government entity was wasting money.
"Over the course of two days I was paid for as many of 3 ½ to 4 hours of work I didn't do," O'Keefe said.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg," he said.
When O'Keefe confronted his supervisor about getting paid for hours he didn't work, she told him not to worry about it.
"We all left early," O'Keefe could be heard telling his supervisor on the tape.
"You got paid for two hours more then," his supervisor replied.
"Yeah, so that's all I'm concerned about," O'Keefe told her.
"I would say don't be concerned...you did your best to, you know, to bring it to our attention. I don't, I don't think anyone's going to be questioning it, except for you," she told O'Keefe. "So I would just let it go."
