Waste, Fraud, and Abuse in Pandemic Spending

A main priority of House Republicans in the majority is to conduct rigorous oversight to hold the Biden Administration and the federal government accountable to the American people. Although we have introduced critical legislation to get our nation back on track, with a Democrat-controlled Senate and White House, it will be difficult for some of these bills to become law. However, our committees have the power to highlight the waste, fraud, and abuse within our government system and to effect real change for Americans by boosting government transparency and accountability. My colleagues on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability have recently focused on the rushed pandemic spending. Without guardrails, the Biden Administration’s bloated spending has directly contributed to the sky-high costs of daily goods and services. It is everyday Oklahomans who are feeling these crushing effects, and Congress must ensure that future emergency funding programs provide assistance, accountability and transparency to the American taxpayer.

Trillions of dollars of hasty government spending left already vulnerable programs and excessive pandemic funding susceptible to improper payments and fraud. In a recent committee hearing, the U.S. Secret Service Office of Investigations shared that they’ve had to open thousands of investigations, arrested hundreds of criminals, and recovered over a billion dollars in fraud. However, there’s still more work to do. Not only did the American Rescue Plan open the flood gates to fraud, but it drove inflation to a 40-year high. Despite a warning from President Obama’s own economic advisor, expressing that this law would trigger the highest inflation in more than half a century, they forced through this massive spending bill anyway. As a result, Americans are struggling to fill their cars, pay rent and bills, and put food on the table for their families. Sadly, the Biden Administration has turned a blind eye to the damage it has done to the economy and to everyday Americans.

It's time to hold the President accountable to the American people. Congress must continue to listen to experts to better understand how this crisis could have been prevented, and what the Administration must do to address it. Obviously, our government needed to respond to the devastating Covid-19 pandemic, but the Democrats’ approach has hampered our nation. I remain committed to holding the government accountable in the best interest of my fellow Oklahomans.