Washington, D.C. – Vice President JD Vance is spearheading an aggressive new push against fraud and waste in federal assistance programs, spotlighting issues in the SNAP food stamp program and suspending thousands of potentially fraudulent pandemic-era small business loans.
In a Fox News interview and a subsequent rally in Bangor, Maine, Vance criticized states for failing to fully cooperate with federal efforts to root out improper payments and fraud. He specifically called out California and other states for not sharing recipient data with federal authorities despite repeated requests, arguing that such non-cooperation hinders accountability for taxpayer dollars.
“American families are struggling, and we cannot afford to have billions wasted on fraud and abuse while states drag their feet,” Vance said during the Maine event. He pointed to systemic problems in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), claiming significant waste that could be curbed through better data sharing and verification.
As chair of the White House Task Force on Fraud, Vance’s office has referred more than $22 billion in suspected fraud cases to the Treasury Department for further action. The effort has already yielded concrete results in Maine, where the Small Business Administration (SBA) suspended 1,500 borrowers linked to approximately $93 million in potentially fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds.
The suspensions are part of a broader review of pandemic relief programs, which distributed hundreds of billions of dollars during the COVID-19 crisis and have since been plagued by reports of widespread fraud.
Democratic governors have pushed back against the administration’s narrative. California Governor Gavin Newsom defended his state’s efforts, stating that California has actively pursued fraud recovery and that federal accusations overlook the complexities of program administration at the state level. Other Democratic-led states echoed similar defenses, accusing the Vance-led task force of politicizing routine oversight.
Vance extended an olive branch in his remarks, offering collaboration with any governor willing to engage transparently. “If they want to work with us to protect taxpayers, the door is open,” he said. “But the American people deserve results, not excuses.”
The initiative reflects the Trump administration’s broader priority of reducing government waste, strengthening program integrity, and redirecting resources toward working families. Administration officials say additional actions targeting other high-fraud areas are expected in the coming weeks.
Critics from the left have called the crackdown overly aggressive and potentially disruptive to legitimate recipients, while supporters praise it as long-overdue accountability for programs that expanded rapidly during the pandemic. The Task Force on Fraud continues to work across agencies, with early estimates suggesting recovered funds could reach several billion dollars if states increase cooperation.
