President Donald Trump officially declared a “war on fraud” during his State of the Union address on Tuesday night. He named Vice President JD Vance as leader of the task force to fight fraud.
Trump claimed Somali fraud is up to $19 billion in Minnesota, greater than has previously been reported. He said it was “the kind of corruption that shreds the fabric of a nation.”
Trump suggested the efforts to tackle fraud could be used to balance the federal government’s budget. The U.S. national debt is more than $38 trillion.
“The Somali pirates who ransacked Minnesota remind us that there are large parts of the world where bribery, corruption and lawlessness are the norm, not the exception,” Trump said.
