The Senate confirmed Colin McDonald on a 52–47 vote to serve as the Justice Department’s first assistant attorney general for national fraud enforcement on Tuesday, as the Trump administration ramps up efforts to crack down on abuse of taxpayer-funded programs.

The confirmation comes as federal officials continue investigating large-scale fraud schemes, including a Minnesota daycare fraud probe involving millions in taxpayer-funded federal dollars, while House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer has alleged whistleblowers warned state leaders about the issue for years.

President Donald Trump created the new National Fraud Enforcement Division to target systemic fraud across federal programs, pointing to cases such as Minnesota, which officials say have both exposed widespread abuse and helped shape the federal government’s response.

«My Administration has uncovered fraud schemes in states like Minnesota and California, where these thieves have stolen hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars,» Trump said. «Together, we will end the fraud and restore integrity to our federal programs.»

EXCLUSIVE: SENATE BILL TARGETS MINNESOTA-STYLE ‘RUNAWAY FRAUD’ TO FORCE SCAMMERS REPAY TAXPAYERS

The new role is intended to centralize enforcement efforts and expand the Justice Department’s ability to investigate and prosecute complex fraud schemes tied to public assistance programs.

During his confirmation hearing, McDonald said the work in Minnesota had been «pivotal» spotlighting fraud in taxpayer-funded programs and that the new division would seek to «scale» similar efforts nationwide.

Attorney General Pam Bondi called McDonald an «experienced, skilled, and tough prosecutor» who will «continue doing incredible work to root out fraud across America.»

FEDERAL FRAUD FACES SENATE SHOWDOWN AS THUNE TAPS ERNST TO LEAD REFORMS AFTER MINNESOTA SCANDAL

Quality Learning Center in Minnesota was found at the center of an alleged childcare fraud scandal in the state. (Madelin Fuerste / Fox News Channel)

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche described McDonald as «one of the most effective attorneys» he has worked with and said the American people should have confidence in his leadership of the new division.

Vice President JD Vance said McDonald has an «exceptional prosecutorial track record» and is well positioned to take on the role.

McDonald currently serves as an associate deputy attorney general at the Justice Department, where he has worked on major enforcement initiatives under Blanche.

GOP SENATOR PUSHES TO CREATE ANTI-FRAUD SPECIAL INSPECTOR GENERAL AFTER MINNESOTA FRAUD REVELATIONS

Senator Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, left, and Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, during a confirmation hearing.  (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

During his testimony, McDonald emphasized the scale of the problem, citing estimates that hundreds of billions of dollars are lost to fraud annually, and said the Justice Department would work with federal, state and local partners to investigate and prosecute cases, adding that «no fraud is too big» and «no fraud is too small» for enforcement.

The Minnesota daycare fraud investigation has drawn particular scrutiny as part of the broader crackdown, with federal investigators and lawmakers examining allegations that funds intended for childcare and meals for children were diverted or misused.

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A recent state audit found Minnesota officials failed for years to properly investigate fraud-related allegations, concluding the Department of Human Services had the authority to pursue cases but did not act, according to the report.

Fox News Digital’s Landon Mion, Andrew Mark Miller, Emma Colton and Max Bacall contributed to this reporting.

An Iranian military spokesman defiantly vowed Tuesday that Tehran’s armed forces will fight «until complete victory,» despite suffering heavy losses from the joint U.S. and Israeli campaign. 

The remark from Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi of the Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, which is Iran’s top military command, comes after President Donald Trump paused planned U.S. strikes on Iran on Monday, citing diplomatic progress. 

«Iran’s powerful armed forces are proud, victorious and steadfast in defending Iran’s integrity, and this path will continue until complete victory,» Iranian state television quoted Aliabadi as saying, according to The Associated Press. It added that Aliabadi did not say what «complete victory» would look like. 

Operation Epic Fury, which started Feb. 28, has resulted in the destruction of or damage to more than 140 Iranian naval vessels, U.S. Central Command said Monday. In total, more than 9,000 combat flights have been conducted as part of the campaign. 

TRUMP’S IRAN STRATEGY SHOWCASES ‘DOCTRINE OF UNPREDICTABILITY’ AMID STRIKE THREATS AND SUDDEN PAUSE 

«CENTCOM forces are striking targets to dismantle the Iranian regime’s security apparatus, prioritizing locations that pose an imminent threat,» CENTCOM said. 

Targeted assets include Iranian navy ships and submarines, air defense systems, anti-ship missile sites, military communication infrastructure and facilities involved in ballistic missile and drone manufacturing. 

On Friday, Trump, speaking about Iran, said, «Their Navy’s gone, their Air Force is gone, their anti-aircraft is all gone.» 

JET FUEL PRICES SOAR AS AIRLINES WARN SUPPLIES COULD RUN DRY WITHIN WEEKS 

Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed at the beginning of Operation Epic Fury. (Office of the Supreme Leader of Iran via Getty Images)

«Their leaders are all gone. The next set of leaders are all gone. And the next set of leaders are mostly gone,» Trump continued. «And now, nobody wants to be a leader over there anymore. We’re having a hard time. We want to talk to them and there’s nobody to talk to.» 

Trump also said, «Over the past few weeks, the world has seen the true strength and might of our sailors and aviators as they fought in one of the most complex and successful military operations of all time against the Iranian regime.»  

A U.S. sailor signals the launch of an MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter aboard the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford while supporting Operation Epic Fury at sea on Feb. 28. (U.S. Navy via Getty Images)

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«And it’s amazing… I don’t want to get too crazy here, not a contest. It’s not even a contest. They do whatever they want,» Trump said. 

Fox News Digital’s Emma Bussey, Morgan Phillips and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Conservative critics are accusing former special counsel Jack Smith of improperly coordinating with two federal judges after Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, released documents Tuesday showing Smith’s team interacted with the pair during the Trump investigations.

«Democrat DC U.S. district judges illegally worked in secret with Biden Special Counsel Jack Smith to bring charges against President Trump,» Article III Project founder Mike Davis claimed on X as details of the documents emerged on Tuesday. 

Smith’s investigations led to criminal charges against President Donald Trump over the 2020 election and alleged retention of classified documents. Trump called the investigations a «witch hunt,» while Republicans widely condemned the charges as an abuse of power designed to take out the then leading Republican presidential candidate.

The documents released by Grassley included notes about a briefing Smith’s team gave Attorney General Merrick Garland on Jan. 13, 2023, just after Garland appointed Smith as special counsel. The notes referenced meetings with Judges Beryl Howell and James Boasberg of Washington, D.C., both Obama appointees and Trump nemeses known for their high-profile adverse rulings against the president.

MIKE DAVIS: WHY DC’S TRUMP-HATING JUDGE BOASBERG MUST BE IMPEACHED

«She liked our approach of pursuing the executive privilege litigation in an omnibus fashion,» Smith’s team wrote in reference to Howell, according to the documents. Omnibus motions allow for consolidated, rather than piecemeal, litigation and are typically used by lawyers to streamline court filings. Smith’s team frequently sought permission from the court to pierce executive privilege, a presumptive right that a president and his aides have that gives their communications a layer of legal privacy.

The briefing notes also referenced a forthcoming meeting with Boasberg on March 18, 2023, the day after he was set to become chief judge, succeeding Howell. The White House responded in a statement to Fox News Digital.

«We have long known that Judge Boasberg is a far-left judicial activist trying to undermine the President’s lawful authority, this is just further proof,» White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said. «President Trump has restored integrity to the Department of Justice that Joe Biden and his administration weaponized to target their political opponents – including President Trump himself.»

Sen. Ted Cruz’s office told Fox News Digital the Texas Republican thought the meetings with the judges were significant, a remark that came after Cruz led a Senate hearing on the Trump cases on Tuesday. Cruz in the hearing declared Smith’s work a «modern Watergate» scandal that was expansive and hyper-political, sweeping up personal information, such as phone records, belonging to hundreds of Republican entities and individuals.

A Republican congressional investigator told Fox News Digital the meetings with the judges merited further scrutiny.

JACK SMITH DEFENDS SUBPOENAING REPUBLICAN SENATORS’ PHONE RECORDS: ‘ENTIRELY PROPER’

Beryl A. Howell and James E. Boasberg, who is taking over from Howell as chief judge of the Federal District Court in D.C., pose for a portrait and talk at E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse in Washington, D.C. on March 16, 2023. (Carolyn Van Houten/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Smith’s team wrote in the briefing notes for Garland that Howell was aware that an omnibus executive privilege motion was coming «and loves the idea.» Smith’s team listed out nearly a dozen former Trump officials, such as Mark Meadows and Ken Cuccinelli, who would be included in the consolidated motion. The notes referenced five other, separate executive privilege motions that were already making their way through the court process, signaling that an omnibus motion would be a reduction in paperwork for the court.

The briefing notes also mentioned recent meetings between the special counsel’s team and top FBI officials. The FBI «has been very responsive,» Smith’s team wrote. The team mentioned «precedent-setting issues we face in areas of executive privilege [and] Speech or Debate,» a possible reference to Smith testing the separation of powers by seeking the potentially privileged material from those in Trump’s orbit.

Independent journalist Julie Kelly, an outspoken critic of the Biden DOJ, observed on X that Smith’s team interacted with the judges. Kelly suggested the judges were «in cahoots with Biden DOJ to rubber stamp, even advise, any strategy set forth by Jack Smith.»

Attorney Bill Shipley, a longtime federal prosecutor who represented dozens of Jan. 6 defendants, wrote on X that he did not find much about the memo «noteworthy,» saying it was «clearly» designed to bring Garland up to speed following the holidays and Smith’s new appointment. Shipley also noted how Howell and Boasberg were chief judges, meaning any grand jury matters were required to go through their offices.

Shipley noted, however, that he felt Howell notoriously ruled against the Trump administration and that her eager approval of an omnibus motion represented a desire for her to make decisions before her tenure as chief judge expired in March 2023.

«What troubles me in the text of the memo is the suggestion — which was borne out by events that followed — that Judge Howell desired to resolve all the issues involving witness privilege before she stepped down as Chief Judge,» Shipley wrote, though he noted that her decisions were appealable.

CRUZ DEMANDS IMPEACHMENT OF BOASBERG AND JUDGE WHO SENTENCED KAVANAUGH’S ATTEMPTED ASSASSIN

Jack Smith, former special counsel, arrives for a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (Getty Images)

Smith has repeatedly stood by his work, testifying to Congress that it was aligned with DOJ policies and nonpartisan. 

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A Smith representative declined to comment on the latest document release.

Howell’s and Boasberg’s chambers did not respond to requests for comment.