Why so long?

USCIS processing times were released, and the California Service Center reported that it takes eight months to process an I-526 petition by an EB-5 alien investor.  Eight months!  I know for a fact it is taking CSC longer -- in many cases more than a year -- to process I-526 petitions.
Eight months or more is disgraceful!
CSC reported that it takes one month to process an L-1 (intracompany transferee) visa cases and two months to process an E-2 (treaty investor) case.
There is $500,000 minimum behind each I-526 petition that could be invested in an American business and create jobs, but USCIS seems quite comfortable to drag its feet.
A former USCIS employee told me that the more employees USCIS trains and devotes to a given type of visa case, the longer the processing time.  That's counter-intuitive, but it is so true.