Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that the Trump administration is creating a new assistant attorney general position focused on investigating fraud tied to federally backed programs, following claims that taxpayers lost billions of dollars in Minnesota.
Vance said the new assistant attorney general will coordinate investigations across federal agencies and pursue criminal charges where warranted. The role will not be housed within the Justice Department, instead operating out of the White House and overseen by President Trump and the vice president.
According to Vance, the assistant attorney general will likely serve through the end of the Trump administration and will have nationwide jurisdiction over fraud investigations, with initial efforts concentrated in Minnesota.
The position will require Senate confirmation, and Vance said a nominee is expected to be announced in the coming days. He added that Senate Majority Leader John Thune has pledged swift confirmation.
The announcement follows the administration’s decision Tuesday to halt more than $10 billion in federal funding for social services programs in Minnesota, New York, California, Illinois, and Colorado. The Department of Health and Human Services has already frozen federal child care funding for Minnesota.
