
Vice President JD Vance said Tuesday that a federal anti-fraud task force has uncovered widespread irregularities in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, including thousands of deceased individuals still listed as recipients.
Speaking at a rally in Iowa, Vance said, “We’ve got 186,000 dead people getting SNAP benefits. 186,000 dead Americans getting food stamps right now. I know the fake news media is going to say that the big headline from this speech is ‘JD Vance proposes that we take away food stamps,'” Vance said during an appearance at an Iowa rally Tuesday.
He continued, “That’s what they’re going to say. I actually think that we should take food stamps away from dead people. I am guilty of that. I think that’s a reasonable thing.”
The task force was created in March through an executive order signed by President Donald Trump, as part of a broader effort to root out fraud across federal programs.
Trump has placed a strong emphasis on eliminating waste and abuse in government spending, particularly as economic concerns and cost-of-living issues remain top priorities for voters ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
The renewed focus on fraud enforcement follows earlier allegations involving misuse of public funds at day care centers operated by Somali residents in Minneapolis, which led to a federal immigration crackdown in the area and sparked widespread demonstrations.
Vance described the process of uncovering fraud within government systems as straightforward. He said Tuesday that finding fraud in the federal government is “kind of like fishing in a barrel with dynamite.”
He added that the scope of what has been uncovered has been surprising. He said he was “shocked every single day by the things” the task force has discovered.
Referring to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Vance said, “Brooke [Rollins] has found out that we’ve got 355,000 people on SNAP benefits receiving double benefits, that we’ve got 186,000 dead people getting SNAP benefits,” Vance said, referring to the agriculture secretary. “186,000 dead Americans getting food stamps right now.”
He also said that Rollins identified additional questionable cases, noting, “there are people who have Lamborghinis who currently receive SNAP benefits.”
Vance concluded by arguing that such situations defy common sense. “I’m a pretty conservative guy, but I would think that like 95% of the United States of America would agree that if you are wealthy enough to afford a Lamborghini, then you are wealthy enough to not receive SNAP benefits from the American people,” said Vance. “Is that common sense?”