Republicans declare war on 'organized theft' with government fraud crackdown

By Fox News · Fox News

FIRST ON FOX: A cohort of Senate Republicans are launching an anti-fraud task force to mirror the efforts of the Trump administration in its multibillion-dollar fraud crusade. Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., is leading the group of nine Senate Republicans in their formation of the Anti-Fraud Task Force, a group that will examine fraud, waste and abuse across federal programs, identify vulnerabilities in those programs and ensure that the buck stops where the flow of funding begins: Congress. "The fraud epidemic burdening our country is one of the most pressing issues facing Americans today," Schmitt said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "It’s organized theft on a national scale, and the Americans paying the price are the ones swinging the hammer and driving the trucking, working their tails off to make ends meet." TRUMP SAYS ANTI-FRAUD EFFORTS ARE UNCOVERING BILLIONS IN WASTE, CLAIMS SAVINGS COULD BALANCE BUDGET "Our Task Force will go after the fraud rings and bad actors exploiting our systems and robbing Americans," he continued. "Following President Trump's lead, we’re declaring war on fraud." Schmitt has recruited Sens. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Katie Britt, R-Ala., Ashley Moody, R-Fla., Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Ron Johnson, R-Wis. SENATE REPUBLICAN PUSHES OVERHAUL TO CUT RED TAPE AND SPEED UP AMERICAN ENERGY PROJECTS Johnson contended that depending on the database you accessed — like the Government Accountability Office or LexisNexis — the amount of federal government fraud fluctuated between $250 billion and $1 trillion per year. "It’s nearly impossible to recover those funds through prosecutions, so we must focus on preventing the money from getting to the fraudsters in the first place," Johnson said. Schmitt’s task force is meant to align with the Trump administration’s anti-fraud efforts led by Vice President JD Vance, whom President Donald Trump tapped to be his anti-fraud czar, that…