July 28, 2022

Smith Demands Answers on Taxpayer-Funded Stimulus Checks Biden Sent to Prisoners, Foreign Citizens, Illegal Immigrants

House Budget Committee Republican Leader Jason Smith (MO-08) has introduced legislation to compel the Biden Administration to release all available information and documents regarding taxpayer-funded stimulus checks from the President’s American Rescue Plan that were sent to prisoners and foreign citizens, as well as any checks that may have been distributed to illegal immigrants.

“President Biden’s $2 trillion so-called ‘Rescue Plan’ sparked the worst inflation crisis in forty years. A closer examination reveals this very same spending has left behind a massive trail of waste and abuse of taxpayer dollars, including billions’ worth of taxpayer-funded checks that went to prisoners as well as Japanese citizens living in Japan. Reports further indicate that millions in taxpayer funds were sent to deceased individuals while millions of illegal immigrants may also have received funds under lax immigration enforcement. The American people and their representatives in Congress deserve a full and thorough accounting of where and to whom this money has gone, and what, if any, attempts the Biden White House has made to reclaim this money for the taxpayers,” said House Budget Committee Republican Leader Smith.

The Resolution of Inquiry introduced by Smith would require the U.S. Department of Treasury to provide information, including documents, records, and correspondence, directly to the U.S. House of Representatives regarding the number and total dollar amount of stimulus checks from the American Rescue Plan sent to deceased individuals, convicted prisoners, non-U.S. citizens living abroad, and illegal immigrants.

House Republicans are seeking more information from the Biden Administration after uncovering a trail of waste left behind from the President’s so-called “Rescue Plan” – including:

  • $783.5 million in stimulus checks sent to over 500,000 federal prisoners, including the Boston Marathon Bomber
  • $1,400 stimulus checks sent to Japanese citizens living in Japan
  • $13 million in stimulus checks sent to deceased individuals
  • Up to $4.38 billion in stimulus checks sent to illegal immigrants
American Rescue Plan Track Record:
  • Sparked the worst inflation crisis in 40 years, up 13.8 percent since Joe Biden took office
  • $400 billion spent on policies that reduced private-sector employment
  • $500 billion spent on state and local bailouts that left behind a massive trail of waste and abuse
  • Hundreds of billions in estimated unemployment insurance fraud
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