Republicans are pushing "common sense" anti-fraud legislation that will "hold the fraudsters accountable," Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, told Newsmax on Wednesday.
Appearing on Newsmax's "Wake Up America," Ernst said Senate Republicans are moving quickly on the Protecting American Taxpayers Act, a package of anti-fraud bills that she said could save taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars by cracking down on waste, abuse, and improper payments.
"This is exactly what our taxpayers expect Congress to focus on after we saw such expansive fraud in Minnesota, in Ohio, in a number of states," Ernst said. "Every single day that we don't pass this bill, American taxpayers are losing $1.4 billion to fraud."
She called the legislation a "common-sense anti-fraud package" backed by nearly the entire Republican conference.
Ernst highlighted provisions designed to stop taxpayer money from flowing to U.S. adversaries, recover improper payments, and prosecute those responsible for fraud.
"If improper payments are going out the door, we have a way to claw them back and hold the fraudsters accountable," she said. "We want to see those scammers in the slammer."
The Government Accountability Office has estimated that fraud cost taxpayers between $233 billion and $521 billion annually from 2018 through 2022, while improper payments have totaled more than $2.8 trillion in recent years.
Republicans argue those figures demonstrate the need for stronger oversight, particularly following high-profile fraud cases involving pandemic relief and public assistance programs.
Ernst, who chairs the Senate DOGE Caucus, also previewed Wednesday's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing examining alleged abuse of federal welfare programs by illegal immigrants and fraudsters.
Among the scheduled witnesses were YouTube creator Nick Shirley, whose reporting helped draw national attention to Minnesota's Feeding Our Future fraud scandal, and investigative journalist James O'Keefe.
"We continue that push to expose people that are doing bad," Ernst said. "This will make Americans' blood boil if they had not paid attention to these issues previously."
She said the hearing would examine how federal taxpayer dollars "have trickled down to those states" before allegedly being exploited "by those that are not here legally, and those that are just simply fraudsters."
Before concluding the interview, Ernst reflected on the recent passing of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., describing him as one of her closest friends in the Senate.
"He was one of my earliest supporters when I ran for office," she said. "He is a good and decent man, and I have not ever known a patriot like Lindsey Graham."
Ernst recalled Graham's personal kindness toward her family, including birthday calls to her mother and encouragement for her daughter during her time at West Point and service in the U.S. Army.
"He was a dear friend," Ernst said. "I'll miss him significantly, as will South Carolina and all of us here in the Senate."
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