Press ReleaseNeutral2026-04-15

Republicans Are Rooting Out Billions in Fraud

ImmigrationHealthcareEnvironmentEducationSocial SecurityAgriculture

Context

This press release from Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) was published on 2026-04-15 and titled "Republicans Are Rooting Out Billions in Fraud". It focuses on immigration and touches on healthcare, the environment.

Full Text

Republicans Are Rooting Out Billions in Fraud

Last week marked a major win in the Trump administration-s efforts to root out waste, fraud, and abuse. Led by Vice President Vance, the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud uncovered $6.3 billion in government contracts awarded to suspected fraudulent businesses under the Biden administration. In total, 392 entities received 895 contracts without any verification that the vendors were real businesses. The task force has now given the contract recipients 30 days to prove they are legitimate and have a physical address-or face the consequences for stealing taxpayer dollars. President Trump created the anti-fraud task force just last month after reports of w idespread fraud among Minnesota-s Somali community. After visiting nearly a dozen child care facilities across Minneapolis that received tens of millions in taxpayer dollars, independent journalist Nick Shirley found not a single one open during working hours. In a separate scheme, the state-s Feeding Our Future program siphoned $250 million in taxpayer dollars meant for needy children. Tens of millions more were stolen in Medicaid fraud for services that were never provided. In total, federal prosecutors say the stolen taxpayer dollars likely exceed $9 billion. The problem goes far beyond Minnesota. Over four years, the Biden administration made more than $925 billion in improper payments-taxpayer funds disbursed to the wrong recipient or at an incorrect amount. Biden-s push to gut anti-fraud safeguards only made the problem worse. In 2024, his administration dropped a requirement for child care centers to prove that children attend their facilities to receive taxpayer dollars-doling out $19 billion with zero verification. The previous administration also verified the identity of less than 1 percent of federal student loan applicants. Last year alone, Education Secretary McMahon prevented more than $1 billion in fraud simply by requiring ID verification. Beyond the task force, President Trump est a blished a new division for national fraud enforcement at the Justice Department to hold these criminals accountable. Acting Attorney General Blanche announced that the agency is investigating more than 8,000 fraud cases. Last week alone, the agency secured guilty pleas and a sentencing accounting for more than $500 million in fraud. At the Treasury Department, Secretary Bessent has rolled out new financial incentives for whistleblowers who flag potential fraud, with the goal of recouping hundreds of billions of dollars. Already, the administration has received more than 700 leads. Agencies from the Department of Agriculture to the Small Business Administration are also working day and night to eliminate fraud across their grant programs. With our national debt approaching $40 trillion, Congress should do everything possible to support the administration-s crackdown on fraud and save taxpayer dollars. That-s why, in the Senate, I introduced the Fraud Accountability Act , which would make clear that fraud counts as a deportable offense under the Immigration and Nationality Act and that any deportable offense can lead to denaturalization. Across the Minnesota cases, 85 of the 98 defendants are of Somali descent. Many funneled stolen taxpayer dollars overseas, and the Somalia-based al Qaeda affiliate, al Shabaab, may have received some of these funds, according to the Trump administration. Just last month, federal prosecutors also charged nine individuals-including six illegal aliens from the Dominican Republic-who used stolen identities to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars in government benefits. Among their frauds: $776,000 in Medicaid benefits, $16,000 in Social Security payments, and nearly $150,000 in SNAP benefits. Government-provided services should go to those who truly need them-not foreign criminals. If you come to our country to steal from the American people, you should be swiftly deported. The Fraud Accountability Act would ensure exactly that.

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Republicans Are Rooting Out Billions in Fraud Last week marked a major win in the Trump administration-s efforts to root out waste, fraud, and abuse. Led by Vice President Vance, the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud uncovered $6.3 billion in government contracts awarded to suspected fraudulent businesses under the Biden administration. In total, 392 entities received 895 contracts without any verification that the vendors were real businesses. The task force has now given the contract recipients 30 days to prove they are legitimate and have a physical address-or face the consequences for stealing taxpayer dollars. President Trump created the anti-fraud task force just last month after reports of w idespread fraud among Minnesota-s Somali community. After visiting nearly a dozen child care facilities across Minneapolis that received tens of millions in taxpayer dollars, independent journalist Nick Shirley found not a single one open during working hours. In a separate scheme, the state-s Feeding Our Future program siphoned $250 million in taxpayer dollars meant for needy children. Tens of millions more were stolen in Medicaid fraud for services that were never provided. In total, federal prosecutors say the stolen taxpayer dollars likely exceed $9 billion. The problem goes far beyond Minnesota. Over four years, the Biden administration made more than $925 billion in improper payments-taxpayer funds disbursed to the wrong recipient or at an incorrect amount. Biden-s push to gut anti-fraud safeguards only made the problem worse. In 2024, his administration dropped a requirement for child care centers to prove that children attend their facilities to receive taxpayer dollars-doling out $19 billion with zero verification. The previous administration also verified the identity of less than 1 percent of federal student loan applicants. Last year alone, Education Secretary McMahon prevented more than $1 billion in fraud simply by requiring ID verification. Beyond the task force, President Trump est a blished a new division for national fraud enforcement at the Justice Department to hold these criminals accountable. Acting Attorney General Blanche announced that the agency is investigating more than 8,000 fraud cases. Last week alone, the agency secured guilty pleas and a sentencing accounting for more than $500 million in fraud. At the Treasury Department, Secretary Bessent has rolled out new financial incentives for whistleblowers who flag potential fraud, with the goal of recouping hundreds of billions of dollars. Already, the administration has received more than 700 leads. Agencies from the Department of Agriculture to the Small Business Administration are also working day and night to eliminate fraud across their grant programs. With our national debt approaching $40 trillion, Congress should do everything possible to support the administration-s crackdown on fraud and save taxpayer dollars. That-s why, in the Senate, I introduced the Fraud Accountability Act , which would make clear that fraud counts as a deportable offense under the Immigration and Nationality Act and that any deportable offense can lead to denaturalization. Across the Minnesota cases, 85 of the 98 defendants are of Somali descent. Many funneled stolen taxpayer dollars overseas, and the Somalia-based al Qaeda affiliate, al Shabaab, may have received some of these funds, according to the Trump administration. Just last month, federal prosecutors also charged nine individuals-including six illegal aliens from the Dominican Republic-who used stolen identities to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars in government benefits. Among their frauds: $776,000 in Medicaid benefits, $16,000 in Social Security payments, and nearly $150,000 in SNAP benefits. Government-provided services should go to those who truly need them-not foreign criminals. If you come to our country to steal from the American people, you should be swiftly deported. The Fraud Accountability Act would ensure exactly that.