Monday on CNN’s “NewsNight,” network contributor Jamal Simmons voiced his frustration with Republicans who questioned the immigration aspects of the Somali refugee fraud scandal.

“Lauren Boebert says the fraud should produce mass deportations,” host Abby Phillip said. “It should be a given. ‘At this point, denaturalization should be fully on the table. Anyone who is afraid to say that is fully on board with the wholesale raping and pillaging of our taxpayer funds at the hands of people who hate our country.’ It’s not really about the fraud.”

Simmons replied, “Abby, this is about criminality, not about nationality. And that’s the part that gets me upset about, the way that the Republican side is going after this, is that we’re focusing on people because of what they look like or where they come from, not based on the actions that they took. Now, there’s a place where we might agree.”

“Democrats have got to get their act together about going after fraud, the same level of strength and vitality about what’s wrong and happening inside a government,” he continued. “Now, there are people who are doing it at some level. But we’ve got to have a level of anger about this because this is public money. And if we are the party that’s supposed to be stewarding public money and making sure that it’s working well, we have to show the American people that we are going to do whatever it takes to make sure their tax dollars are spent well.”

“So, when we go and we tax these billionaires and we get that other 5 percent out of them, we’re going to spend that money well to make sure our kids have a chance to have the best schools and get the best start in life,” Simmons added,

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