Stopping Fraudulent Payments Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. McGARVEY. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 8464.
This bill lets the President take away money from anything or anyone he doesn't like, as long as he thinks it is merely at risk for fraud. We have seen what he thinks is fraud.
Last year, Donald Trump froze $9 million intended for Serve Kentucky. Congress set aside that money for housing, hunger relief, education, and disaster relief in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The White House called that money waste and fraud. I have seen Serve Kentucky's work firsthand. President Trump might not like a program that brings food to seniors or new books to kids, but that doesn't make it fraud.
We know this President uses his power to punish those he does not like. He has done it before. He will do it again.
I agree with my Republican colleagues: No one wants waste or fraud from our taxpayer dollars. Congress must take a hard look at waste and fraud in our government.
Let's start with Donald Trump's ballroom. The President destroyed the White House and then said: Let me build a gaudy, billion-dollar ballroom that looks like it should hold slot machines, not State dinners.
He has been soliciting donations left and right from billionaires, tech and tobacco companies, defense contractors, and dozens more individuals and companies that do business with and profit from the Federal Government and your tax dollars.
The American people, all of us, deserve to know who and how much they are paying for access to President Trump.
For this reason, at the appropriate time, I will offer a motion to recommit this bill back to committee. If the House rules permitted, I would have offered the motion with an important amendment to this bill.
My amendment would prevent this bill from taking effect until the White House provides a list of every person who has donated to the White House ballroom.
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Mr. McGARVEY. Madam Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me in voting for the motion to recommit.
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Mr. McGARVEY. Madam Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.
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