President Donald Trump is putting $25 million on the table to pay Americans for turning in fraudsters who steal taxpayer money. He and Vice President JD Vance unveiled the Fraud Whistleblower Incentive Program, called WHIP, during a Tuesday Oval Office announcement with the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.
Eligible tipsters can earn up to $30,000 if their information leads to a successful fraud conviction or a significant federal enforcement action. The Justice Department will run the program, and Americans can submit tips through fraud.gov. Just filing an accusation doesn’t get you paid, though. Your tip actually has to produce results.
You can read more about Trump’s whistleblower fraud initiative and how the administration plans to take this program nationwide.
White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis put it plainly in a statement: “Every day, President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud is zeroing in on the rampant abuse of taxpayer dollars and giving Americans the accountability they deserve. This administration has zero tolerance for individuals who steal from Americans.” Imagine having to actually say that out loud, because for the last four years nobody in Washington felt the need to bother.
Trump established the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud back in March, naming Vance as its chairman. The executive order directed federal agencies to coordinate investigations, tighten eligibility checks, and stop taxpayer dollars from going to people who have no business getting them. Novel concept, apparently.
Also at the event, Trump will hand independent journalist Nick Shirley a $10,000 check for his reporting on suspected fraud in Minnesota. Shirley made national headlines in December 2025 after publishing a video questioning whether several Somali-run daycare centers in Minnesota were running legitimate operations. The footage showed apparently empty facilities, and people on camera said they hadn’t seen children at the locations.
The White House credited his work with helping push additional FBI and Department of Homeland Security resources into Minnesota, which led to investigations, arrests, and new charges. One of the facilities Shirley featured was Future Leaders Early Learning Center. Its former CEO, Fahima Egeh Mahamud, pleaded guilty in July to wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors said Mahamud stole more than $4.6 million through false child care assistance claims and another $850,000 through a federal child nutrition program tied to the larger Feeding Our Future scandal.
Critics tried to dismiss Shirley’s reporting at the time, which didn’t age particularly well for them. Well, numbers don’t lie, and convictions don’t lie either,” Shirley told Fox News Digital. Hard to argue with that.
The broader WHIP program is designed to give everyday Americans a financial reason to come forward when they see public money being stolen. Tips go to fraud.gov, the Justice Department handles the rest, and if your information puts a fraudster behind bars, you get paid. It’s almost like the government is working for taxpayers again, which, if you’ve been paying attention for the last several decades, is a genuinely refreshing change of pace.
