It was a confirmation hearing like no other, as Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) brought out the big guns in his attempt to block the appointment of Julie Su as Labor Secretary. In a surprising move, the Senate Labor Committee Ranking Member quoted lyrics from a rap song by Nuke Bizzle to bash Su’s handling of the Employment Development Department (EDD) program in California.
Nuke Bizzle, whose real name is Fontrell Antonio Baines, made headlines in 2020 when he was arrested for exploiting the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance provisions of the CARES Act to scam the government out of over $700,000 in unemployment insurance money.
In the music video that caught the attention of the authorities, Nuke Bizzle bragged about his fraudulent activities, rapping, “I’ve done got rich off of EDD/aint hit no more licks because of EDD/Just last night I was selling P’s and I just woke up to $300 G’s.”
Senator Cassidy used the lyrics to highlight the rampant fraud that occurred under Su’s oversight of the EDD program, which lost over $30 billion due to fraud. Unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident, as unemployment fraud became a nationwide issue during the pandemic. The CARES Act provided a lifeline for millions of Americans, but it also created an opportunity for fraudsters to exploit the system.
Pandemic-related fraud in the EDD program has been a significant issue not only in California but across the country.
According to a report from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, at least $87 billion of the $896 billion in unemployment benefits distributed during the pandemic could have been paid improperly due to fraud or overpayment.
The unprecedented surge in unemployment claims and the introduction of new federal benefits programs provided fraudsters with ample opportunities to exploit the system.
State agencies, like the EDD, struggled to keep up with the volume of claims and implement effective fraud prevention measures, further exacerbating the issue.
The California State Auditor reported that despite repeated warnings, the EDD did not bolster its fraud detection efforts until months into the pandemic and suspended a critical safeguard.
“This mismanagement does not inspire confidence that Ms. Su can run a multibillion dollar organization,” declared Senator Cassidy, who asked for unanimous consent to insert a transcript of Nuke Bizzle’s music video entitled “EDD” into the hearing record.
In the end, Nuke Bizzle was sentenced to 77 months in prison and ordered to pay $704,760 in restitution for his role in scamming the government.
As for Julie Su, her appointment as Labor Secretary is still up in the air, but one thing is for sure, this confirmation hearing will go down in history as the one where a senator used rap lyrics to make a political point.