RFK Jr. to Dem: “You’re Just Mouthing Democratic Talking Points — Medicaid Cuts Are Fraud, Waste, Abuse”; DOGE Found 1M in Multi-State Fraud

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced protesters and hostile Democrat questioning at a congressional hearing in May 2025. Left-wing disruptors stormed the hearing room before being removed by Capitol Police. When Rep. Josh Harder (D-CA) asked “Do you disagree with the cuts being proposed for Medicaid?” Kennedy fired back: “I don’t know if you understand this or whether you’re just mouthing the Democratic talking points. The cuts to Medicaid are fraud, waste and abuse. Because of DOGE, we determined there’s a million people claiming Medicaid from multiple states. That’s illegal. It’s theft.” He cited another million on both Obamacare and Medicaid, and a million illegal aliens — after which “Gavin Newsom said he’s taking all the illegal aliens off California Medicaid because the feds aren’t paying for them anymore.” AOC argued she was “talking to 13.7 million Americans on the other side of that screen” instead of Republican members.

Disruptors Stormed the Hearing

The hearing began with chaos.

Kennedy was attempting to present: “Or, with less, the budget I’m presenting today supports these goals and reflects…”

Shouting began as protesters disrupted the proceedings.

The chairman intervened: “The witness will suspend. The committee will come to order. Capitol Police will ask to remove the individuals from the hearing.”

The disruption continued as protesters resisted.

The chairman repeated: “Members of the audience are reminded disruptions will not be permitted while the committee conducts its business. Capitol Police are asked to remove the individuals from the hearing room.”

Capitol Police eventually removed the disruptors, but the pattern had become familiar. Virtually every major congressional hearing on Trump administration policy now featured left-wing protesters attempting to derail testimony through disruption. The goal was to generate viral video of supposedly oppressive administration officials being confronted by “the resistance” — regardless of the effect on actual legislative oversight.

Kennedy’s composure throughout the disruption was notable. Rather than engaging with the protesters or allowing them to rattle him, he waited calmly for Capitol Police to restore order. When the disruption ended, he resumed his testimony without commenting on what had just occurred.

”Mouthing Democratic Talking Points”

Rep. Josh Harder (D-CA) pursued the Democratic messaging on Medicaid cuts.

“About half of my district is on Medicaid,” Harder began. “The recent budget being discussed in the House right now would leave 50,000 people in my community without health insurance.”

He delivered the prepared attack: “So Secretary Kennedy, my question for you is why do you think that a community like mine doesn’t deserve access to that same basic health care provided by Medicaid that you benefited from?”

Kennedy engaged substantively: “I do believe that is the design of the Medicaid program.”

Harder pressed: “So do you disagree with the cuts that are being proposed for Medicaid right now?”

Kennedy’s response was direct: “I don’t know if you understand this or whether you’re just mouthing the Democratic talking points.”

He explained the substance: “The cuts to Medicaid are for fraud, waste, and abuse. And I’ll tell you what that means. It means that because of DOGE, we were able to determine…”

He delivered the key data: “There are about 8 million people who would be affected. Because of DOGE, we were able to determine that there are a million people who are claiming Medicaid from multiple states. That’s illegal. It’s theft. You’re not allowed to do that.”

He continued: “Another million people who are collecting both under Obamacare and Medicaid.”

Harder attempted to dismiss the point: “Secretary, that has nothing to do with the budget that’s actually being proposed. These are the only cuts that are being made to Medicaid.”

Kennedy was firm: “That’s not true.”

Harder insisted: “Yes, it is.”

Kennedy added the third category: “Or another million illegal aliens. We announced a law yesterday, a rule yesterday — we’re not going to pay illegal aliens anymore.”

He delivered the political kicker: “And guess what Gavin Newsom did this morning? He said we’re going to take all the illegal aliens off the California Medicaid rolls because the feds aren’t paying for them anymore. So the compassion…”

The Newsom revelation was devastating. The Democratic attack on Medicaid cuts had been that they would harm vulnerable Americans. Kennedy was demonstrating that the cuts primarily affected fraud (people enrolled in multiple states), benefit stacking (people double-dipping Obamacare and Medicaid), and ineligible recipients (illegal immigrants). The fact that California’s Democratic governor had just announced he would remove illegal aliens from Medicaid the moment federal funding disappeared proved that even Democrats recognized those enrollments had been improper.

The “1 Million Multi-State” Revelation

The multi-state Medicaid enrollment fraud was one of DOGE’s most significant discoveries. Medicaid was structured as a joint federal-state program, with each state administering its own program subject to federal guidelines. The theory was that individuals could only be enrolled in one state’s Medicaid program at a time.

DOGE’s cross-state data analysis had revealed a million individuals enrolled in multiple state Medicaid programs simultaneously. Each enrollment triggered federal matching funds paid to the state — meaning the federal government was paying benefits for the same person multiple times. The total fraud amounted to billions of dollars annually.

The solution was straightforward: cross-reference state Medicaid enrollment against a federal database and eliminate duplicate enrollments. Doing so would generate massive savings while ensuring that every legitimate Medicaid beneficiary continued to receive exactly the benefits they were entitled to.

The reason this had never been done before was simple: political. Democratic governors in states like California and New York had no interest in aggressive enrollment verification that might reduce federal dollars flowing to their states. The Biden administration had no interest in confronting Democratic governors on the issue. DOGE — operating under Trump’s direction with no political considerations about offending Democratic allies — had simply identified the fraud and demanded it be addressed.

AOC vs. GOP Member

The hearing also featured a characteristic AOC exchange.

A Republican member interjected during her questioning: “I’m glad you’re addressing us instead of addressing the camera.”

AOC’s response was prepared: “There are 13.7 million Americans on the other side of that screen right there. Hello. Hello. I’m talking to you because I work for you. And they deserve to see what is happening here.”

She provided context: “There are plenty of districts, including Republican ones, where 25% of your constituents are on Medicaid. 40% of your constituents are on Medicaid.”

She addressed the interruption: “And yes, I am…”

When asked to yield: “I am talking to them and I will not yield because it was a terribly disrespectful comment. And I will not yield to disrespectful men. Thank you very much.”

AOC’s approach was revealing about modern Democratic communication. Her real audience was not her fellow members of Congress. It was the online audience — the “13.7 million” who watched her social media posts and video clips. Traditional congressional hearings had been designed for member deliberation; AOC was using the format as a television studio for her personal brand.

The “I will not yield to disrespectful men” response converted a procedural dispute into a gender grievance. Whether the Republican member had been disrespectful was debatable; his comment had been factually accurate (she was indeed addressing the camera rather than engaging with fellow members). But AOC’s response transformed the interaction into a viral moment about patriarchal disrespect — exactly the kind of content that fed her online audience.

The Medicaid Debate

The underlying debate about Medicaid funding was substantive. Medicaid spent over $800 billion annually across federal and state contributions, covering approximately 75 million Americans. The program’s growth had been explosive — Medicaid spending had tripled over the previous 15 years, outpacing healthcare inflation and GDP growth.

Republican reform proposals focused on: eliminating fraudulent enrollments (the multi-state and double-benefit cases Kennedy cited), removing illegal immigrants from the rolls, implementing work requirements for able-bodied adults, and providing states more flexibility to manage their own programs. Democratic opposition characterized any reduction in Medicaid spending as an attack on vulnerable Americans.

Kennedy’s framing — that the reforms were eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse rather than cutting benefits — was politically effective because it was largely accurate. No legitimate Medicaid beneficiary would lose coverage if someone else fraudulently enrolled in multiple states. Removing the fraud preserved benefits for everyone who actually qualified.

Key Takeaways

• Disruptors stormed Kennedy’s hearing before Capitol Police removed them. Kennedy remained composed throughout.
• RFK Jr. to Rep. Harder: “You’re just mouthing Democratic talking points. Medicaid cuts are fraud, waste, abuse.”
• DOGE findings: 1 million on multi-state Medicaid, 1 million on Obamacare + Medicaid, 1 million illegal aliens.
• “Gavin Newsom said he’s taking all illegal aliens off California Medicaid because the feds aren’t paying.”
• AOC: “13.7 million Americans on the other side of the screen deserve to see this. I will not yield to disrespectful men.”