Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Let me be clear: Fraud in Federal programs is a real problem. It diverts money meant for children, seniors, and working families into the pockets of criminals. Every dollar lost to…
Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Let me be clear: Fraud in Federal programs is a real problem. It diverts money meant for children, seniors, and working families into the pockets of criminals. Every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar that didn't feed a hungry child, didn't help a disabled veteran, didn't reach the people that this Congress intended to help.
Democrats and Republicans have a long history of working together to stamp it out. We should continue to do that, and I thank the gentleman from Texas. I know he is sincere in his commitment to address this issue, but this resolution turns what should be a bipartisan effort into a partisan political attack that points the finger only at Democratic-led States and Governors while pretending the problem does not exist in Republican-led States.
The gentleman said we should follow the story, but this resolution is an incomplete story. It doesn't go where the story goes. Let's talk about some of the story that this resolution leaves out.
Mississippi has a Republican Governor, Tate Reeves. In the largest public fraud case in that State's history, more than $77 million was stolen from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, program, money meant for some of the poorest families in America. It was diverted to professional athletes, horse farms, and a volleyball complex.
An audit found tens of millions in misspent Federal funds, and some of that money ended up in the pockets of Trump endorser and outspoken MAGA Republican Brett Favre, who took taxpayer dollars for speaking arrangements and never showed up. He pocketed the taxpayers' money and never showed up.
In December of 2024, Mississippi was ordered to repay $101 million in misspent welfare money. That State's Republican-controlled legislature has done nothing to address that fraud and corruption. As of today, they are sitting on $145 million in unallocated TANF funds with no real plan.
This resolution names Governor Walz and A.G. Ellison and mischaracterizes what has happened in Minnesota. It says nothing about Governor Reeves, who was directly implicated in the coverup of the fraud.
Let's continue to follow the story of Oklahoma and Alabama. According to Federal data, these two States, led by Republican Governors, lead the Nation in SNAP fraud. They lead the Nation. It is not Minnesota, not New York, not New Jersey, not Maryland. It is Oklahoma and Alabama. This resolution is silent in both cases.
In Florida, Federal prosecutors recently arrested a Russian national accused of submitting billions of dollars in fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid claims through a Texas-based supplier and funneling millions overseas.
Governor DeSantis in Florida just reappointed a University of Florida board of trustees member who faces Federal charges for defrauding the government of financial aid funds. In Florida, there is not accountability for fraudsters. There are board positions.
In Tennessee, Republican State Senator Brian Kelsey was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The good news is he was sentenced to 21 months in prison. The bad news is President Trump pardoned him 15 days after he began serving that sentence.
The former Republican speaker of the Tennessee House and his chief of staff were convicted together in a public corruption case. President Trump pardoned them both, too. This resolution calls for accountability for those who steal from Federal programs.
In 2025, alone, President Trump issued pardons or commutations to 25
people convicted of fraud--wire fraud, securities fraud, tax fraud, bank fraud, healthcare fraud. Those pardons deprived fraud victims of more than a billion dollars in restitution they were owed. Americans had a billion dollars stolen from them, and they are not getting it back because President Trump pardoned the criminals.
This resolution doesn't mention it.
Another State that I don't think is in the resolution is New York, and there has been some fraud in New York. A gentleman by the name of Donald J. Trump was found liable by a New York court for a decade of business fraud, inflating his net worth and values to deceive banks and insurers. The same gentleman in the State of New York was convicted by a jury of his peers--12 jurors--of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, fraud. The same gentleman also indicted by a Federal grand jury for conspiracy to defraud the United States.
President Trump pardoned convicted fraudsters, fired 19 inspectors general who collectively uncovered over $50 billion in fraud and waste in a single year. He defunded a nonpartisan training program that prepares the next generation of Federal fraud investigators.
You can't claim to be serious about preventing fraud, whether you have a task force or not, while you are dismantling the institutions built to catch people who commit fraud.
Mr. Speaker, I support robust, bipartisan efforts to prevent fraud in Federal programs. On the Oversight Committee, Democrats and Republicans have worked together to do that, but this resolution isn't that.
I will quote a former U.S. attorney who spent his career prosecuting the healthcare fraud that is rampant in Mississippi, not mentioned in the resolution. He said: Whether a provider or beneficiary is willing to commit fraud has nothing to do with where they live or which party governs their State.
If my colleagues truly want to fight fraud, I invite them to join me in condemning Mississippi, Oklahoma, Alabama, and Florida with the same energy they brought to fraud in other States. I invite them to condemn the pardons in 2025 that let convicted fraudsters walk free. I invite them to work with us to restore the independence of our inspectors general and fund the oversight infrastructure that this administration has defunded and gutted.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the comments from the gentleman from Texas. He is open and always willing to have a conversation and work on bipartisan legislation, and I appreciate that.
I do think it is unfair to suggest that the majority or the gentleman are the only ones who have done the work to understand these issues. I came to this floor with documented cases of fraud that have taken place across the country.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the full text of the March 4, 2026, ``Democratic Staff Report--Fraud As Pretext: How the Trump Administration Sacrificed Accountability to Push a Violent, Lawless Agenda,'' which can be found at the following link: https:// oversightdemocrats.house.gov/imo/media/doc/2026-03- 04fraudaspretextstaffreport.pdf.
[March 4, 2026]
Fraud as Pretext: How the Trump Administration Sacrificed
Accountability to Push a Violent, Lawless Agenda
Democratic Staff Report: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
U.S. House of Representatives
Mr. Speaker, this report outlines some of the facts related to Minnesota and the harm done by the Trump administration's freezing of Federal funds in a number of States where law-abiding Americans who pay their taxes aren't getting the benefits that they have earned because the Trump administration has frozen funds.
I appreciate the gentleman's willingness to always engage and discuss these issues in a serious way and, as he said, follow the story wherever it leads. We have had in the Oversight Committee Governor Walz and AG Ellison.
I would just like to ask the gentleman whether he would be willing to bring to the Government Operations Subcommittee some of the Governors of the States that I outlined, where massive fraud has taken place: Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida.
Can we bring any of those Governors before our committee to talk about the fraud in their States?
Mr. Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions).
Reclaiming my time, Mr. Speaker.
Another significant incident of fraud that isn't mentioned in the resolution, and that we haven't mentioned yet today, took place in the State of Texas, where the Attorney General, Ken Paxton, was indicted for securities fraud, and he had to pay $300,000 in restitution and perform community service to avoid potential jail time.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the gentleman: Would you be willing to ask Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to come before our committee to talk about fraud in Texas?
Mr. Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions).
Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time.
It doesn't sound like we are going to bring any other Governors or State officials before the committee. As I noted, Governor Walz was with us for many, many hours, but no other Governors have come before us. I think that does a disservice to the American people who could benefit from hearing about the fraud in some of these other States, as well.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the full text of the CBS News article: ``Trump says he'll stop health care fraudsters. Last time, he let them walk.''
[From CBS NEWS, April 1, 2025]
Trump Says He'll Stop Health Care Fraudsters. Last Time, He Let Them
Walk.
(By Brett Kelman)
Five years ago, the CEO of one of the largest pain clinic
companies in the Southeast was sentenced to more than three
years in prison after being convicted in a $4 million illegal
kickback scheme.
But after just four months behind bars, John Estin Davis
walked free. President Trump commuted Davis' sentence in the
last days of his first term. In a statement explaining the
decision, the White House said that ``no one suffered
financially'' from Davis' crime.
In court, however, the Trump administration was saying
something very different. As the president let him go, the
Department of Justice alleged in a civil lawsuit that Davis
and his company defrauded taxpayers out of tens of millions
of dollars with excessive urine drug testing. The DOJ alleged
that Comprehensive Pain Specialists made such a``staggering''
sum from cups of pee that employees had given the testing a
profit-minded nickname: ``liquid gold.''
Davis and the company denied all allegations in court
filings and settled the DOJ's fraud lawsuit without any
determination of liability. Davis declined to comment for
this article.
Since returning to the White House, Mr. Trump has said he
will target fraud in Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security,
and his Republican allies in Congress have made combating
fraud a key argument in their plans to slash spending on
Medicaid, which provides health care for millions of low-
income and disabled Americans. During an address to Congress
last month, Mr. Trump said his administration had found
``hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud'' without citing
any specific examples of fraud.
``Taken back a lot of that money,'' Mr. Trump said. ``We
got it just in time.''
But Mr. Trump's history of showing leniency to convicted
fraudsters contrasts with his present-day crackdown. In his
first and second terms, Mr. Trump has granted pardons or
commutations to at least 68 people convicted of fraud crimes
or of interfering with fraud investigations, according to a
KFF Health News review of court and clemency records, DOJ
press releases, and news reports. At least 13 of those
fraudsters were convicted in cases involving more than $1.6
billion of fraudulent claims filed with Medicare and
Medicaid, according to the Department of Justice.
And as one of the first actions of his second term, Mr.
Trump fired 17 independent inspectors general responsible for
rooting out fraud and waste in government.
It sends a really bad message and really hurts DOJ efforts
at creating deterrence,'' said Jacob Elberg, a former
assistant U.S. attorney and law professor at Seton Hall
University in New Jersey. ``In order to reduce health care
fraud, you need people both to be afraid of getting in
trouble, but also for people to believe in the legitimacy of
the system.''
Elberg said considerable fraud in Medicare and Medicaid
exists largely because the programs' ``pay-and-chase models''
prioritize paying for patient care first and tracking down
stolen dollars second. To prevent more fraud, the programs
would likely need to be redesigned in ways that would be
slower and more cumbersome for all patients, Elberg said.
Regardless, Elberg said the president's claimed focus on
fraud appears to be a pretext for slashing spending that has
been legally appropriated by Congress. Mr. Trump has
empowered the Elon Musk-led Department of Government
Efficiency, which he established and named by executive
order, to make deep cuts in federal budgets, halting some
medical research and aid programs in addition to cutting
spending on climate change, transgender health, and
diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
``What's been the focal point to date of the administration
is not what anybody has ever referred to as health care
fraud,'' Elberg said. ``There is a real blurring--a seemingly
intentional blurring--between what is actually fraud and what
is just spending that they are not in favor of.''
Jerry Martin, who served as a U.S. attorney for the Middle
District of Tennessee under President Barack Obama and now
represents health care fraud whistleblowers, also said Mr.
Trump's focus on fraud appeared to be ``just a platform to
attack things that they don't agree with'' rather than ``a
genuine desire to root out and combat fraud.''
Even so, Martin said some of his whistleblower clients have
been emboldened.
``I've had clients repeat back to me `President Trump says
fraud is a priority,' '' Martin said. ``People are listening
to it. But I don't know that what he's saying translates into
what they believe.''
The White House did not respond to requests for comment for
this article.
A billion-dollar fraud case and needless eye injections
Presidents enjoy the unique authority to erase federal
convictions and prison sentences with pardons and
commutations. In theory, the power is intended to be a final
bulwark against injustice or overly harsh punishment. But
many presidents have been accused of using the pardon power
to reward powerful allies and close associates as they leave
the White House.
Mr. Trump issued about 190 pardons and commutations in the
final two months of his first term, including for some health
care fraudsters convicted of schemes with astonishing costs.
For example, Mr. Trump granted a commutation to Philip
Esformes, a Florida health care executive convicted in 2019
of a $1.3 billion Medicare and Medicaid fraud scheme. After
he was sentenced, DOJ announced in a press release that ``the
man behind one of the biggest health care frauds in history
will be spending 20 years in prison.'' Mr. Trump freed him 14
months later.
Mr. Trump also granted a commutation to Salomon Melgen, a
Florida eye doctor who was serving a 17-year prison sentence
for defrauding Medicare of $42 million. Melgen falsely
diagnosed patients with eye diseases, then gave them
unnecessary care, including laser treatments and painful eye
injections, according to DOJ and court documents.
``Salomon Melgen callously took advantage of patients who
came to him fearing blindness,'' said a DOJ news release
after Melgen was sentenced in 2018. ``They received medically
unreasonable and unnecessary tests and procedures that
victimized his patients and the American taxpayer.''
DOJ: $70 million spent on ``excessive'' urine testing
Despite the flurry of pardons and commutations at the end
of Mr. Trump's first term, the leniency he showed Davis was
unique. Davis was the only convicted health care fraudster to
receive clemency while the Trump administration was
simultaneously accusing him of more fraud.
As CEO of Comprehensive Pain Specialists from 2011 to 2017,
Davis oversaw a rapid expansion to more than 60 locations
across 12 states, according to federal court documents.
He was indicted in 2018 for using his CEO position to refer
Medicare patients in need of medical equipment to a
conspirator in return for kickbacks paid through a shell
company, according to court documents. He was convicted at
trial in April 2019 of defrauding Medicare.
Three months later, the DOJ filed a fraud lawsuit against
Davis and CPS that piggybacked on the claims of seven
whistleblowers. The lawsuit alleged that CPS collected more
than $70 million from federal insurance programs for urine
drug testing, most of which was ``excessive,'' and that an
audit of a sampling of the tests had found at least 93%
``lacked medical necessity.''
Typically, government insurance programs pay for urine
testing so pain clinics can verify that patients are taking
their prescriptions properly and not abusing any other drugs,
which could contribute to an overdose. Patients could be
tested as little as once a year or as often as monthly
depending on their level of risk, according to the DOJ
lawsuit.
But Comprehensive Pain Specialists performed ``myriad urine
drug testing on virtually every CPS patient on virtually
every visit'' then conducted ``at least 16 different types of
tests'' on each sample, and sometimes as many as 51,
according to the lawsuit.
Mr. Trump commuted Davis' sentence for his criminal
conviction in January 2021 as the DOJ was finalizing a
settlement in the civil lawsuit. The commutation was
supported by country music star Luke Bryan, according to a
White House statement.
Months later, with President Joe Biden in office, CPS and
its owners agreed to repay $4.1 million--less than 10% of the
damages sought in the suit--and the case was closed.
In the settlement, Davis agreed not to take any job where
he would ever again bill Medicare or other federal health
care programs. He was not required to personally repay
anything.
Martin, who represented one of the whistleblowers who first
raised allegations
against Davis and CPS, said the leniency that Mr. Trump
showed to him and other health care fraudsters may discourage
DOJ employees from pursuing similar investigations during his
second term.
``There are a lot of rank-and-file people who are operating
at the lowest point in their professional careers, where
they've seen a lot of their work essentially be water under
the bridge,'' Martin said. ``That's got to be really
demoralizing.''
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the full text of a PBS News article: ``Trump's pardons included health care execs behind massive frauds.''
[From PBS News, Jan. 22, 2021]
Trump's Pardons Included Health Care Execs Behind Massive Frauds
At the last minute, President Donald Trump granted pardons
to several individuals convicted in huge Medicare swindles
that prosecutors alleged often harmed or endangered elderly
and infirm patients while fleecing taxpayers.
``These aren't just technical financial crimes. These were
major, major crimes,'' said Louis Saccoccio, chief executive
officer of the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association,
an advocacy group.
The list of some 200 Trump pardons or commutations, most
issued as he vacated the White House this week, included at
least seven doctors or health care entrepreneurs who ran
discredited health care enterprises, from nursing homes to
pain clinics. One is a former doctor and California hospital
owner embroiled in a massive workers' compensation kickback
scheme that prosecutors alleged prompted more than 14,000
dubious spinal surgeries. Another was in prison after
prosecutors accused him of ripping off more than $1 billion
from Medicare and Medicaid through nursing homes and other
senior care facilities, among the largest frauds in U.S.
history.
``All of us are shaking our heads with these insurance
fraud criminals just walking free,'' said Matthew Smith,
executive director of the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud.
The White House argued all deserved a second chance. One man
was said to have devoted himself to prayer, while another
planned to resume charity work or other community service.
Others won clemency at the request of prominent Republican
ex-attorneys general or others who argued their crimes were
victimless or said critical errors by prosecutors had led to
improper convictions.
Trump commuted the sentence of former nursing home magnate
Philip Esformes in late December. He was serving a 20-year
sentence for bilking $1 billion from Medicare and Medicaid.
An FBI agent called him ``a man driven by almost unbounded
greed.'' Prosecutors said that Esformes used proceeds from
his crimes to make a series of ``extravagant purchases,
including luxury automobiles and a $360,000 watch.''
Esformes also bribed the basketball coach at the University
of Pennsylvania ``in exchange for his assistance in gaining
admission for his son into the university,'' according to
prosecutors.
Fraud investigators had cheered the conviction. In 2019,
the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association gave its
annual award to the team responsible for making the case.
Saccoccio said that such cases are complex and that
investigators sometimes spend years and put their ``heart and
soul'' into them. ``They get a conviction and then they see
this happen. It has to be somewhat demoralizing.''
Tim McCormack, a Maine lawyer who represented a
whistleblower in a 2007 kickback case involving Esformes,
said these cases ``are not just about stealing money.''
``This is about betraying their duty to their patients.
This is about using their vulnerable, sick and trusting
patients as an ATM to line their already rich pockets,'' he
said. He added: ``These pardons send the message that if you
are rich and connected and powerful enough, then you are
above the law.''
The Trump White House saw things much differently.
``While in prison, Mr. Esformes, who is 52, has been
devoted to prayer and repentance and is in declining
health,'' the White House pardon statement said.
The White House said the action was backed by former
Attorneys General Edwin Meese and Michael Mukasey, while Ken
Starr, one of Trump's lawyers in his first impeachment trial,
filed briefs in support of his appeal claiming prosecutorial
misconduct related to violating attorney-client privilege.
Trump also commuted the sentence of Salomon Melgen, a
Florida eye doctor who had served four years in federal
prison for fraud. That case also ensnared U.S. Sen. Robert
Menendez (D-N.J.), who was acquitted in the case and helped
seek the action for his friend, according to the White House.
Prosecutors had accused Melgen of endangering patients with
needless injections to treat macular degeneration and other
unnecessary medical care, describing his actions as ``truly
horrific'' and ``barbaric and inhumane,'' according to a
court filing.
Melgen ``not only defrauded the Medicare program of tens of
millions of dollars, but he abused his patients--who were
elderly, infirm, and often disabled--in the process,''
prosecutors wrote.
These treatments ``involved sticking needles in their eyes,
burning their retinas with a laser, and injecting dyes into
their bloodstream.''
Prosecutors said the scheme raked in ``a staggering amount
of money.'' Between 2008 and 2013, Medicare paid the solo
practitioner about $100 million. He took in an additional $10
million from Medicaid, the government health care program for
low-income people, $62 million from private insurance, and
approximately $3 million in patients' payments, prosecutors
said.
In commuting Melgen's sentence, Trump cited support from
Menendez and U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.). ``Numerous
patients and friends testify to his generosity in treating
all patients, especially those unable to pay or unable to
afford healthcare insurance,'' the statement said.
In a statement, Melgen, 66, thanked Trump and said his
decision ended ``a serious miscarriage of justice.''
``Throughout this ordeal, I have come to realize the very
deep flaws in our justice system and how people are at the
complete mercy of prosecutors and judges. As of today, I am
committed to fighting for unjustly incarcerated people,''
Melgen said. He denied harming any patients.
Faustino Bernadett, a former California anesthesiologist
and hospital owner, received a full pardon. He had been
sentenced to 15 months in prison in connection with a scheme
that paid kickbacks to doctors for admitting patients to
Pacific Hospital of Long Beach for spinal surgery and other
treatments.
``As a physician himself, defendant knew that exchanging
thousands of dollars in kickbacks in return for spinal
surgery services was illegal and unethical,'' prosecutors
wrote.
Many of the spinal surgery patients ``were injured workers
covered by workers' compensation insurance. Those patient-
victims were often blue-collar workers who were especially
vulnerable as a result of their injuries,'' according to
prosecutors.
The White House said the conviction ``was the only major
blemish'' on the doctor's record. While Bernadett failed to
report the kickback scheme, ``he was not part of the
underlying scheme itself,'' according to the White House.
The White House also said Bernadett was involved in
numerous charitable activities, including ``helping protect
his community from COVID-19.'' ``President Trump determined
that it is in the interests of justice and Dr. Bernadett's
community that he may continue his volunteer and charitable
work,'' the White House statement read.
Others who received pardons or commutations included Sholam
Weiss, who was said to have been issued the longest sentence
ever for a white collar crime--835 years. ``Mr. Weiss was
convicted of racketeering, wire fraud, money laundering, and
obstruction of justice, for which he has already served over
18 years and paid substantial restitution. He is 66 years old
and suffers from chronic health conditions,'' according to
the White House.
John Davis, the former CEO of Comprehensive Pain
Specialists, the Tennessee-based chain of pain management
clinics, had spent four months in prison. Federal prosecutors
charged Davis with accepting more than $750,000 in illegal
bribes and kickbacks in a scheme that billed Medicare $4.6
million for durable medical equipment.
Trump's pardon statement cited support from country singer
Luke Bryan, said to be a friend of Davis'.
``Notably, no one suffered financially as a result of his
crime and he has no other criminal record,'' the White House
statement reads.
``Prior to his conviction, Mr. Davis was well known in his
community as an active supporter of local charities. He is
described as hardworking and deeply committed to his family
and country. Mr. Davis and his wife have been married for 15
years, and he is the father of three young children.''
CPS was the subject of a November 2017 investigation by KHN
that scrutinized its Medicare billings for urine drug
testing. Medicare paid the company at least $11 million for
urine screenings and related tests in 2014, when five of CPS'
medical professionals stood among the nation's top such
Medicare billers.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the CBS Miami article: ``Florida Eye Doctor Salomon Melgen Gets Clemency From Trump In Medicare Fraud.''
[From CBS News Miami, Jan. 21, 2021]
Florida Eye Doctor Salomon Melgen Gets Clemency From Trump in Medicare
Fraud
Rappers, a real estate investor convicted in a Ponzi scheme
and a once-prominent eye doctor were Floridians on former
President Donald Trump's clemency list hours before he exited
the presidency.
Trump commuted the sentence of Salomon Melgen, who was
convicted in 2017 of defrauding Medicare out of $73 million
by persuading numerous elderly patients to undergo tests and
get treatment for diseases they did not actually have.
Melgen was serving 17 years at a Miami prison, but was
released early on Wednesday, Jan. 20 after he was included on
a list of more than 140 people who were either pardoned or
had their sentences commuted by Trump during his last hours
in the White House.
A federal jury in New Jersey failed to reach a verdict
later in 2017 on charges that Melgen provided bribery gifts
to Democratic
Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey. A mistrial was declared in
that case.
A White House statement credited Menendez with supporting
clemency for Melgen, who was a donor to Democratic
politicians and a longtime friend of the Cuban-American New
Jersey senator. The statement said clemency for Melgen also
was supported by Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, a Florida
Republican, and members of Brigade 2506, the Cuban exile
group involved in the CIA-backed Bay of Pigs invasion in
1961.
``Numerous patients and friends testify to his generosity
in treating all patients, especially those unable to pay or
unable to afford healthcare insurance,'' the White House
statement said.
In a statement of his own, Menendez said he did very little
on Melgen's behalf and did not expect the clemency decision
from Trump. There's also scant evidence of any relationship
between Trump and Melgen.
``I don't pretend to know what motivates President Trump to
act, but I am pretty sure it's not me,'' Menendez said.
``Months ago, I was asked if I could offer insight about an
old friend, and I did, along with what I understand were more
than 100 individuals and organizations, including his former
patients and local Hispanic groups familiar with Sal's
leadership and philanthropy in the South Florida community.''
Melgen, originally from the Dominican Republic and a
Harvard-trained ophthalmologist, became a notable Democratic
fundraiser, hosting numerous events at his home in North Palm
Beach. He once treated former Florida Democratic Gov. Lawton
Chiles, who appointed him to a state board.
Others on Trump's clemency list included:
Rapper Lil Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Michael Carter
Jr., was given a full pardon. The Grammy-winner was charged
in Florida on Nov. 17 with possession of a firearm by a
convicted felon, a federal offense that carries a potential
sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
Rapper Kodak Black, whose real name is Bill K. Kapri, was
granted a commutation. The ``Tunnel Vision'' rapper is
serving a three-year prison sentence for falsifying documents
used to purchase weapons at a Miami gun store.
Fred Davis Clark Jr. had his 40-year prison sentence
commuted. He was convicted in 2016 of falsely promising his
company could turn dilapidated properties in Florida, Las
Vegas and the Caribbean into luxury resorts that would bring
investors fat returns. In reality, the operation was a Ponzi
scheme that used money from new investors to pay existing
ones while Clark took millions off the top.
That does come up in the resolution.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a Kaiser Family Foundation Health News article: ``Trump's Health Fraud Focus at Odds With Past Pardons.''
Trump's Health Fraud Focus at Odds With Past Pardons
Since returning to the White House, President Donald Trump
has made combating fraud a centerpiece of his administration.
Trump has said he will target fraud in Medicare, Medicaid,
and Social Security programs, and his Republican allies in
Congress have made combating fraud a key argument in their
plans to slash Medicaid. Trump also has empowered the Elon
Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency to make massive
cuts to government spending, often claiming to snuff out
fraud and waste in the process.
Trump's present-day crackdown starkly contrasts with his
history of showing leniency to convicted fraudsters. In his
first and second terms, Trump has granted pardons or
commutations to at least 68 people convicted of fraud crimes
or interfering with fraud investigations, according to a KFF
Health News review of court and clemency records, Department
of Justice press releases, and news reports. At least 13 of
those fraudsters were convicted in cases involving more than
$1.6 billion in fraudulent claims filed with Medicare and
Medicaid, according to the DOJ.
In interviews with KFF Health News, two experts on health
care fraud said that Trump's claimed focus appears to be a
pretext for slashing spending that was legally appropriated
by Congress.
``What's been the focal point to date of the administration
is not what anybody has ever referred to as health care
fraud,'' said Jacob Elberg, a former assistant U.S. attorney
and law professor at Seton Hall University. ``There is a real
blurring--a seemingly intentional blurring--between what is
actually fraud and what is just spending that they are not in
favor of.''
Jerry Martin, who served as a U.S. attorney for the Middle
District of Tennessee under President Barack Obama and now
represents health care fraud whistleblowers, said Trump's
stepped-up interest may embolden informants to come forward.
``I've had clients repeat back to me `President Trump says
fraud is a priority,' '' Martin said. ``People are listening
to it. But I don't know that what he's saying translates into
what they believe.''
Even so, Trump's past leniency to fraudsters might
discourage the Justice Department from pursuing the
whistleblowers' claims, Martin said.
``There are a lot of rank-and-file people who are operating
at the lowest point in their professional careers, where
they've seen a lot of their work essentially be water under
the bridge,'' Martin said, ``That's got to be really
demoralizing.''
The White House did not respond to requests for comment.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, with respect to Minnesota--and this is laid out in the report that I entered into the Record--the majority's own investigation does not support the assertions that they make in their resolution here today. Witnesses that were questioned did not support the claims that Governor Walz or Attorney General Ellison directed anyone to ignore fraud.
Instead, they describe the fraud controls, the law enforcement partnerships, and the steps to stop fraudulent payments. Minnesota's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has prosecuted more than 300 cases and recovered more than $80 million for taxpayers. Those prosecutions were well underway long before the majority on the Oversight Committee took any interest in the situation.
There is some more fraud that I haven't discussed yet today, and it is taking place in the Trump administration. President Trump accepted a $400 million plane from a foreign government, in my view, I think quite clearly, in violation of the Constitution.
The Air Force then had to modify that plane to address security concerns. Those modifications are estimated to cost a billion dollars. The Air Force won't tell us. Taxpayers spent at least $1 billion to modify the gifted jet that the President got from the Qatari Government.
Maybe you would be okay with that if it was a gift to the United States of America. What is going to happen to the plane in 2029? It will be transferred to the Donald Trump Presidential Library Foundation. Those transfer costs, to transfer the $400 million gift the President took from the Qatari Government, were also paid for by the taxpayers.
The taxpayers are getting a raw deal here, and President Trump is getting a brand new, $400 million--I should say $1.4 billion--jet.
I haven't talked yet about the digital schemes. World Liberty Financial was started by the Trump family in 2024. Most of the profits flow directly to the Trump family. It is estimated they have profited $1.6 billion. Where did that money come from? It came from people who bought meme coins and have seen the value of those coins plummet. Constituents maybe in my district or yours, Mr. Speaker, who have lost money, that money is in the pockets of the Trump family.
I haven't gotten into the conflicts of interest, the stock trades, the prediction market profits.
I heard the White House created a task force to prevent fraud. This White House and this Cabinet are a task force to commit fraud. It is well-documented.
I was reading the resolution, and one of the whereas clauses says: ``Whereas the Department of Justice has also discovered that $250 million meant for a child nutrition program was instead spent on luxury cars. . . . '' That is bad. That is outrageous. Whoever did that should be prosecuted.
Mr. Speaker, I wonder if it would surprise my friends on the other side of the aisle to know that President Trump's Department of Homeland Security, under the leadership of Secretary Noem, spent hundreds of millions of dollars, not on luxury cars, but on luxury jets. They bought, not one, but two of the top-of-the-line Gulfstream G700s.
Secretary Noem basically walked into the proverbial Gulfstream dealership and said: I don't want the base model. That is not good enough. I want the most expensive model, the biggest, with the softest leather seats. I am not going to pay for it. I am going to send the bill to the taxpayers, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.
I have called on Secretary Mullin to sell those jets, recoup hundreds of millions of dollars for the taxpayers and go back to flying the more modest Gulfstream G550 that previous DHS Secretaries flew.
I wonder if the gentleman would join me in that request of Secretary Mullin to sell the Gulfstreams and fly in a more modest jet, as previous Secretaries have.
I share the outrage about this taxpayer money being spent on luxury cars. Surely, we shouldn't be spending it on luxury jets.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions).
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, I have no speakers, and I yield myself the balance of my time to close.
Mr. Speaker, President Trump's pardons and commutations have wiped away billions of dollars in victim restitution, forfeiture, and fines. That includes people who have been pardoned who were convicted of securities fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, tax evasion, healthcare fraud, and public corruption.
President Trump commuted the sentence of Lawrence Duran, who helped lead a massive Medicare fraud scheme that generated hundreds of millions of dollars in false claims and more than $87 million in restitution.
He commuted Joseph Schwartz, whose nursing home empire collapsed after years of neglect and fraud, leaving patients, workers, and families devastated.
Let's not forget the $1.8 billion slush fund for January 6 cop beaters, that he continues to try to put in place.
Let's be clear, Mr. Speaker, the other side wants to lecture us about fraud. They stay silent as this administration lets convicted fraudsters walk free and wipes away the money owed to victims and taxpayers.
It doesn't stop there. As I noted, President Trump and his family stand to personally and financially benefit from some of these actions.
In April of 2026, a drone manufacturer, backed by Eric and Donald Trump, Jr., won its first DOD contract to supply drones to the Pentagon, while their father and the President of the United States led the country into an illegal war with Iran.
We have fraud being perpetrated on the American public with memecoins, no-bid contracts, Tom Homan's alleged $50,000 paper bag of money, insider trading in the White House, and the appearance, at least, maybe more, of pardons for sale.
It is hard to take seriously this resolution, expressing to be concerned about fraud, when there is massive fraud taking place and the majority says and does nothing.
A serious anti-fraud agenda would strengthen inspectors general, fully fund the Government Accountability Office, and protect independent oversight. This resolution doesn't do that.
While oversight Democrats will oppose this partisan resolution, we are going to continue to support legislation and continue to work in a bipartisan way to combat financial fraud and improper payments, protect the privacy of sensitive taxpayer information, toughen Federal ethics laws, and hold fraudsters accountable, especially those that have been pardoned by President Trump.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.