Vice President JD Vance told a crowd of supporters in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, on March 13 that he and President Donald Trump are leading efforts to uncover billions of dollars in fraud and protect citizens nationwide.
“We are going to go after the fraud,” Vance said during the event, held on the grounds of a repurposed 19th-century cotton mill on the Tar River. “And we are going to rebuild the American dream by making sure that it goes to Americans first and Americans only.”
Trump appointed the vice president to head the White House’s anti-fraud task force following revelations of approximately $19 billion in fraud in Minnesota.
Authorities are prioritizing resources while investigating “waste, fraud, and abuse” in what Vance said amounts to “the first national look at the way the American people have been defrauded over many, many years.”
“We know there’s a lot of fraud in California, and we’re trying to get to the bottom of exactly what it looks like,” he said.
Justice includes criminal charges for perpetrators that disincentivize future schemes, he said.
“Frankly, we want to arrest the people who engaged in criminal fraud,” Vance said.
“We want to make sure that the people who did this stuff realize there are serious consequences for it happening. We want to make sure that the needy kids all across our communities get what they need.”
Investigators are reviewing payments to health care and educational programs, among others, and auditing federal expenditures to ensure accuracy and compliance.
Inspections uncovered illegal immigrants receiving Medicaid benefits.
Other instances of fraud include medical device companies that never delivered products, yet collected hundreds of millions of dollars in payouts, according to Vance.
Small Business Administration administrator Kelly Loeffler reiterated Washington’s commitment to root out fraudulent payments.
“We’re bringing back the nation that we knew where freedom and grit, not the government, created generational opportunity,” she said.
“Hardworking Americans will never be forgotten again. We’re working every single day to restore greatness in this nation for the next 250 years.”
Officials also championed the SAVE America Act, calling on lawmakers to pass the legislation Republicans have said would protect election integrity.
“What the Save America Act does is that it makes it impossible for illegal aliens to vote in our elections,” Vance said, while informing the crowd of an illegal immigrant from Mauritania who was caught after voting in seven federal elections beginning in 2008.
He endorsed Republican senatorial candidate Michael Whatley in his race against Democrat former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper for the state’s open senate seat.
Whatley urged the crowd to get out the vote this year to help the Trump administration achieve its goals.
“We want safe communities and safe kids,” he said, bringing attention to the state’s nation-leading 720,000 veterans.
“And we want the men and women in uniform from North Carolina who are protecting our interests and our allies around the world to have everything that they need to carry out their mission.”
Vance additionally endorsed Laurie Buckhout in her race against incumbent Rep. Don Davis (D-N.C.) in the 1st Congressional District.
He asked the crowd to clap for their favorite Trump administration accomplishment, choosing from no taxes on social security, tax cuts for Americans earning less than $100,000 per year, and having “gone to war against violent criminals.”
Administration officials are showering attention on the battleground region.
Trump visited Rocky Mount on Dec. 19 to highlight economic achievements and lower drug prices for Americans.
