$9 billion.

That is the estimated amount of taxpayer dollars stolen via fraud schemes in Minnesota under Governor Tim Walz’s watch. To make matters worse, the U.S. Treasury Department uncovered that millions are being diverted to Somalia and, inevitably, landing in the hands of Al-Shabaab terrorists.

Let’s do a quick recap of how we got here.

COMER VOWS MINNESOTA FRAUD PROBE WILL EXPAND TO OTHER STATES AMID MOUNTING SCRUTINY

Minnesota fraudsters, the vast majority of whom are Somali, applied for and received funds from various state-run welfare programs to line their own pockets and funnel money overseas. From COVID-era food nutrition assistance meant for children, to housing, to fake autism centers, to empty daycares — Tim Walz allowed fraudsters to take advantage of hardworking taxpayers at every turn.

And these are just the instances we know about.

Feeding Our Future: The Feeding Our Future nonprofit swindled $250 million in federal funds meant to feed hungry children during the pandemic, leading to the largest COVID-19 fraud scheme in the country. 

Seventy-eight criminals have been charged so far, 90% of whom are Somalis. One Minneapolis grocery store owner was charged with seeking $1 million in federal nutrition funds and then using that money to pay personal expenses, including credit card bills.

Housing Stability Services Program: Before the program went live in 2020, officials pegged its annual estimated price tag at $2.6 million. By 2024, it had paid out $100 million in claims, nearly 10 times the initial cost. The Minnesota Department of Human Services terminated the program at the end of October 2025 because it was so fraudulent, and eight people have been indicted.

Autism: One Somali woman pleaded guilty after stealing $14 million from creating a fake autism center. She and her co-conspirators went around the Somali community recruiting kids for autism services, regardless of whether they actually had autism. Because the barrier for entry is virtually nonexistent for welfare in Tim Walz’s Minnesota, these fraudulent "autism services" then received taxpayer dollars. By the time the fraud scheme was exposed, 1 in 16 Somali 4-year-olds in Minnesota had reportedly been diagnosed with autism — a rate more than triple the state average. Autism claims to Medicaid skyrocketed from $3 million in 2018 to nearly $400 million in 2023. Approximately 85 autism clinics are reported to be under investigation.

Daycares: $4 million worth of taxpayer dollars went to an education center that can’t even spell "learning" correctly on its front door. It was also reported that this same center made news for collecting 95 violations from the state human services agency between 2019 and 2023. A citizen journalist, Nick Shirley, found daycare centers receiving millions in taxpayer dollars, sitting empty with no children in them.

The fraud has been so brazen and widespread, it’s impossible the Walz administration didn’t notice, including his lieutenant governor and attorney general. I, along with my fellow Minnesota Republicans, have been sounding the alarm on this issue for more than three years, but we were met with nothing but lies and inaction by Minnesota’s Democrat senators, the Biden administration and their allies in the media.

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Secretaries Noem, Bessent, Duffy, Turner, Rollins, McMahon, Chavez-DeRemer, FBI Director Patel, Administrator Loeffler, Dr. Oz, Stephen Miller, Border Czar Tom Homan and more have all raised this issue and launched investigations. My friend, Chairman James Comer of the House Oversight Committee, also announced two hearings in the upcoming weeks with Minnesota state officials, Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison to help expose failures, identify solutions and deliver accountability.

Last week, the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that they banned Minnesota fraudsters from all SBA loan programs. The Department of Health and Human Services recently froze federal childcare funding for the state of Minnesota due to fraud. I am also looking into drafting legislation that would denaturalize and deport any Somali who engaged in fraud.

Let me be clear: Tim Walz dropping out of the Minnesota governor’s race does not exempt him or members of his administration from accountability. Those who were criminally complicit need to be carried away in handcuffs. The Somalis who engaged in fraud need to be denaturalized and deported. And Congress must follow up with legislation to ensure this level of fraud can never happen again.

The American people are outraged and rightfully so. Minnesotans deserve better. Now, thanks to President Trump, accountability is finally here.