Trump to Name New Assistant Attorney General to Combat "Fraud"

U.S. President Donald Trump said recently that he has chosen a new assistant attorney general with a focus on combating fraud nationwide.

McDonald is currently an associate deputy attorney general. (Photo: United States Department of Justice Facebook

“We have chosen a person who’s very tough, very smart, very fair,” Trump told reporters at the White House, Katharine Jackson and Ryan Patrick Jones reported for Reuters.

Rights advocates and critics say the administration is using fraud allegations as an excuse to target immigrants and political opponents. They also cite Trump’s pardons of individuals with past fraud convictions.

Reporting for CBS News, Jennifer Jacobs named Colin McDonald as the person being considered for the newly created position of assistant attorney general, sources said.

McDonald is currently an associate deputy attorney general. The White House earlier said it was creating a new division within the Department of Justice to combat what it called “rampant” fraud.

The new assistant attorney general will be responsible for probing, prosecuting, and remedying fraud affecting the federal government, federally funded programs, and private citizens.

The Trump administration has singled out Minnesota over what it says is fraud by immigrants in the welfare system and social‑service programs.