House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith, R-Mo., told Newsmax on Tuesday that congressional Democrats are more focused on discrediting reports of widespread fraud than on rooting out corruption and protecting taxpayer dollars.
Speaking on Newsmax's "National Report," Smith said Congress should be prioritizing oversight to ensure hard-earned taxpayer money is spent properly and not lost to waste, fraud, or abuse.
"Unfortunately, the Democrats that I serve with in Congress have just ignored fraud. And I don't know if it's simply because they are benefiting from fraud or they like what's coming out of it," Smith said. "But it's a huge problem."
Regardless, he said, evidence of massive fraud has been met with indifference from the left. Smith pointed to an estimated $400 billion stolen through COVID-era unemployment fraud, money he said Republicans are still trying to recover.
"Members of Congress should be focused on making sure that hard-earned taxpayer dollars are being spent appropriately, without waste, fraud, and abuse. There's so many areas in government that we have found wasteful spending, but also fraudulent spending," Smith said.
Smith also highlighted what he described as rampant corruption in Minnesota, calling the situation "unacceptable."
He cited nearly $9 billion in fraudulent activity and singled out the now-defunct nonprofit Feeding Our Future, which he said improperly took more than $250 million in federal funds meant to feed the hungry.
According to Smith, the money was instead spent on mansions and luxury cars.
"That is corruption," Smith said, adding that those responsible should be held accountable.
He noted that Feeding Our Future lost its tax-exempt status in 2020 yet continued to receive federal dollars. Smith said Democrats have largely ignored such cases, raising serious questions about their commitment to combating fraud.
"We have to address it and we have to hold people's feet to the fire," Smith said.
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