JD Vance rips Tim Walz for allowing Somalians to defraud Minnesota programs

NEW: Vice President JD Vance rips Minnesota Governor Tim Walz for allowing Somalian immigrants to defraud Minnesota programs. According to Stephen Miller, more money has been stolen than the entire GDP of Somalia.

Federal investigators in Minnesota highlighted a massive surge in public corruption, estimating that at least $9 billion, half of the $18 billion in total federal funds provided for 14 "high-risk" state social programs, may have been stolen. This "industrial-scale" fraud has primarily targeted programs designed to aid vulnerable populations, including child nutrition, housing stabilization, and autism therapy services.

The scams typically involved billing state agencies for services never rendered or vastly inflating the number of people served. For instance, a pandemic-era child nutrition scheme led by the nonprofit Feeding Our Future allegedly defrauded taxpayers of over $300 million.

In other cases, fraudsters recruited Somali families to falsely certify children for autism treatments, resulting in millions of dollars in fraudulent Medicaid reimbursements.

The investigation has had significant legal and political repercussions. As of late 2025, over 90 individuals have been charged, with more than 80 identifying as Somali Americans, leading to a focus on the community that has sparked intense debate. While some conservative reports alleged that stolen funds were funneled to international groups like Al-Shabaab, federal prosecutors stated in December 2025 that no concrete evidence of terrorism funding had yet been established.