'Horrific!' Dem upends GOP 'fraud' hearing by recounting Trump's pardons of fraudsters

Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) lashed out at Republicans on the House Oversight Committee for jumping on alleged daycare fraud in Minnesota while ignoring President Donald Trump's pardons of fraudsters.

"And when people commit fraud, and people get hurt, there's going to be repercussions as there should be," Garcia said during a Wednesday hearing. "We want to hold fraudsters accountable. We want to protect the victims and innocent people."

"But we also know that's not how it should work according to President Trump," he continued. "President Trump granted a get out of jail free pardon to Philip Esformes. Now, Mr. Esformes is a nursing home mogul convicted of schemes who defraud Medicare and Medicaid of $1.3 billion. Where is that hearing?"

"Let's look at another case, another Trump case. Joseph Schwartz, he was sentenced for taking advantage of nursing home residents and workers and defrauding the government of $38 million."

Garcia noted that Trump also granted Schwartz a pardon.

"Now, I'm assuming that our witnesses here today would think this is horrific fraud," the lawmaker told the Republican witnesses.

"Sir, I've not looked at the facts of the case or the law," one witness replied, "so I cannot make a statement on that."

"These are pardons to criminals and fraudsters!" Garcia pointed out. "Now in Trump's America, rich people can rip innocent people off whenever they want and get a pardon."