As South Dakota’s attorney general, I’m no stranger to the effects of fraud.
asserted
I → ’m → fraud
It doesn’t matter whether the victim is a senior citizen, a business paying a contractor, a family taking out a loan, or the American taxpayer funding a government program; the damage has been done.
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damage → matter → program
I’ve seen countless hardworking people harmed by scammers who felt the rules didn’t apply to them.
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rules → see → them
That is why fighting fraud and protecting consumers has been the heart of my work as attorney general, and why I believe that experience matters as I look to enter Congress as South Dakota’s sole representative this November.
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I → fight → representative
I have seen fraud up close.
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I → see → fraud
In 2025, my office prosecuted an internet scam that stole at least $325,000 from a Lawrence County couple.
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that → prosecute → couple
The defendant was sentenced to eight years in prison and ordered to pay $325,000 in restitution.
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defendant → sentence → restitution
Similarly, in Huron, a contractor stole more than $36,000 from seven customers for construction work that was never completed.
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that → steal → work
These crimes are unacceptable, but now, they’re happening at a national level.
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they → happen → level
As we know, fraud these days doesn’t always come from a man with a computer in his basement.
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fraud → know → basement
As technology advances, so do the techniques of scammers, especially as artificial intelligence gives everyday people the ability to produce deepfakes and similar scamming materials.
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intelligence → advance → deepfakes
In July, I was proud to help South Dakota join a 46-state settlement with Block Inc. after its product Cash App misled consumers about the safety of its platform.
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product → help → platform
Our state is now receiving more than $410,000 from the settlement.
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state → receive → settlement
We have also worked with attorneys general across the country to correct the digital infrastructure that allows scams to happen in the first place.
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scams → work → place
Just this past September, I joined 48 other attorneys general in calling on the Federal Communications Commission to strengthen rules aimed at preventing scammers from accessing legitimate telephone numbers for illegal robocalls.
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I → join → robocalls
Stopping fraud is about protecting your wallet, which is why consumer protection extends to banking as well.
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protection → stop → banking
In March, South Dakota joined a bipartisan group of 13 attorneys general in suing OneMain Financial over allegations that borrowers were misled about loans and unwanted add-on products.
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borrowers → join → loans
The most important lesson I’ve learned during my time in office is that it’s rarely the people’s fault.
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it → learn → office
When we see billions in Medicaid and other social services fraud, we can’t just point blame at one another.
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we → see → one
We have to address where the government turned a blind eye in the first place.
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government → have → place
I saw this personally when I helped prosecute the case of a former Department of Social Services employee.
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I → see → employee
This person was convicted by a jury of stealing approximately $1.8 million in taxpayer funds from Child Protection Services.
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person → convict → Services
She’ll now serve seven years for attempting to take away vital funding from children who need it the most.
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who → serve → it
I’ve put a stop to it in South Dakota, and I’ll do the same in Washington.
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I → put → Washington
Back in 2025, I worked with legislators on a government accountability package that strengthened reporting requirements, whistleblower protections, auditing authority, and internal controls.
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that → work → requirements
In May, I was able to take this work to the nation’s capital.
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I → take → capital
I worked alongside Vice President JD Vance and other attorneys general at a White House fraud task force roundtable focused on combating fraud in public assistance programs.
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I → work → programs
Since then, South Dakota applied to take part in the federal Special Attorneys Program to strengthen cooperation between state and federal prosecutors.
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Dakota → apply → prosecutors
My goal is to bring this expertise to Congress, and from there to the Judiciary Committee, because no American taxpayer deserves to see a single dollar of theirs has been wasted.
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dollar → bring → theirs
South Dakotans understand this.
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Dakotans → understand → this
They work hard for their money, and any abuse of that is a breach of trust.
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abuse → work → trust
My experience fighting fraud has taught me that affordability is not only about what the government spends.
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government → fight → what
It is also about stopping the people and institutions that take money from Americans through deception, waste, and abuse.
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that → stop → deception
The Aporia
