U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli revealed this week that the Trump administration has already made “major strides” in uncovering fraud in the deep Blue state of California.
During an interview on Fox News, Essayli discussed fraud in Los Angeles homelessness initiatives and detailed efforts that led to uncovering stolen funds.
Essayli said the Trump administration is targeting fraud and has recently suspended federal funding to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) over allegations of mismanagement.
Essayli, leading probes in California’s Central District, has pursued cases involving developers misusing Project Homekey grants and other taxpayer dollars intended for housing as part of broader federal efforts to address unaccounted billions in prior spending.
“Within a matter of months, we found out a lot of money was stolen. We’ve charged almost $100M in fraud … everyone’s making so much money off of this,” Essayli said.
Vice President JD Vance is spearheading President Trump’s no-holds-barred war on waste, fraud, and abuse, chairing the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud and delivering early results that promise massive savings for American taxpayers.
Established by executive order in March, the task force under Vance’s leadership has moved swiftly to root out rampant exploitation of federal benefit programs.
In just months, it has flagged nearly $6.3 billion in government contracts awarded to potentially fraudulent businesses, prompting investigations into hundreds of suspect entities.
The task force also referred over $22 billion in fraudulent small business loans back to the Treasury for collection.
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Major actions include suspending $1.4 billion in payments to home health and hospice providers nationwide suspected of fraud and deferring more than $1.3 billion in questionable Medicaid reimbursements, with particular scrutiny on high-fraud states like California and Minnesota.
Aggressive audits have identified tens of billions more in Medicaid and Medicare fraud, leading to the shutdown of hundreds of fraudulent hospice centers.
In recent months, Vance has hammered home the human and fiscal costs of the scams.
During a stop in Bangor, Maine, he warned that fraudsters — not hardworking Americans — have been the real beneficiaries of bloated government programs.
“Fraud is exactly what happens when you’ve got a government that is not fighting for the American people but is fighting for fraudsters,” Vance said.
He has highlighted tragic cases, such as elderly Minnesotans neglected while caretakers were billed for unrendered services, underscoring that these schemes harm the vulnerable most.
At roundtables with state attorneys general and in public updates, Vance has stressed a “whole-of-government” approach, praising partners like CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz for exposing massive improper payments.
“In just two months we exposed billions of dollars in benefits that have been stolen,” he noted, vowing relentless pursuit: “If you are committing fraud, our task force will find you.”
The vice president has made clear the fight is far from over, predicting hundreds of millions — if not billions — more in savings as deeper audits continue.
With the national debt soaring, Vance’s efforts are positioning the Trump administration to deliver on promises of fiscal responsibility by clawing back funds looted from taxpayers.
Critics on the left may cry foul, but supporters say Vance is finally putting America first by ending the era of unchecked government grift.
President Trump praised Vance on Truth Social earlier this week for his efforts to uncover fraud.
“Vice President JD Vance and Republicans are doing a great job hunting down Fraud in the various States. Billions of Dollars is being found, and we’ve just started!” the president wrote.