Vice President J.D. Vance appeared in Bangor, Maine, on Thursday and spoke to voters about the work of the federal anti-fraud task force established by the Trump administration. President Trump has appointed VP Vance to lead the task force to identify exploitation of taxpayer-funded programs. Vance spoke positively of the task force’s efforts and criticized state-level Democrats for obstructing them rather than assisting in the fight against fraud.
“What I find so preposterous about Maine-it’s not just that we’ve found tens of millions of dollars of fraud in a relatively small state, it’s that we’ve had no cooperations from the state government,” Vance said.
Vice President Vance’s speech comes ahead of Maine’s primary elections on Tuesday, June 9th, when voters will select candidates for several high-level offices, including governor, U.S. Senate, and U.S. House.
Democrats view the seat currently held by Republican Senator Susan Collins as a key opportunity to shift the balance of power within the chamber. The U.S. House Seat is also considered competitive, with Republicans hoping to flip the seat currently held by Democratic Rep. Jared Golden.
Vance specifically called out the Democratic Governor of Maine, Janet Mills, for failing to assist the task force. “I would love to work with the governor of Maine to stop the fraud that’s being perpetrated in this state…This isn’t Republican or Democrat-this is common sense.” Vance said.
Dr. Mehmet Oz, who leads the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under the Trump administration, recently identified Maine as a source of alleged fraud in the government-funded health programs. Governor Mills described Dr. Oz’s call to action as a political attack rather than a serious issue. Mills recently dropped out of the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate seat, leaving Sen. Collins likely to face Democratic candidate Graham Platner in the November general election.
Vance shared his optimism about his work in the Trump administration, reassuring voters that positive outcomes are on the horizon. “This job has given me more confidence than ever that this country — its best days are ahead of it…,” Vice President Vance said. “We have the most talented, the most compassionate, and the toughest people anywhere in the world. Ladies and gentlemen, America is the best country — and it’s going to be the best country for many years to come.”
