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Tim Graham said Saturday, "Many local stories that could be harmful to Democrat politicians don’t become national TV stories for an obvious reason. In the case of the massive welfare fraud committed by Somalis in Minnesota under Democrat Gov. Tim Walz, former Vice President Kamala Harris’s 2024 running mate, that is doubly obvious.
The focus launched with conservatives on Nov. 19, with a City Journal article by Christopher Rufo and Ryan Thorpe that included a rather unforgettable sentence: "The largest funder of [al Qaeda-linked] al-Shabaab is the Minnesota taxpayer."
Fraudulent social service payments were sent to Somalia and ended up in a dangerous place.
Corruption dates back to our earliest history of human existence.
This is the worst we've seen in a very long time. Maybe the worst ever.
What has been revealed in the last few days makes Al Capone and his cohorts look like a scrimmage on the playground.
The Bible has a great deal to say about corruption.
Be informed, not misled.
Tim Graham is right. The news media went silent when word got out about what has been going on in Minnesota.
Here's what's happening.
Via Fox News:
A series of sprawling fraud schemes involving hundreds of millions of dollars stolen from Minnesota taxpayers — from COVID-relief programs to housing and autism services — have placed the state’s Somali community under a renewed, intense spotlight, raising uncomfortable questions about whether some who found refuge here are robbing their new neighbors blind.
These swirling fraud cases — and claims that some ill-gotten gains were diverted to the Somali terrorist organization Al-Shabaab — have now prompted a House investigation, a Treasury Department probe and mounting political pressure on state leaders, including Democrat Gov. Tim Walz, over why Minnesota failed to safeguard taxpayer money.
The fraud revelations, combined with a string of violent crimes and revived terror concerns involving Somali-linked defendants, have shaken public confidence and raised urgent questions about why Minnesota failed to stop the schemes sooner. The developments have also deepened public unease and revived long-standing questions about assimilation, oversight, and public safety in Minnesota.
‘Schemes stacked upon schemes'
It is now estimated that more than $1 billion of taxpayer money has been funneled into various individual pockets, fake non-profit organizations, and to the country of Somalia.
The centerpiece, so far, of the fraud and corruption is the "Feeding Our Future" case, where approximately $300 million intended to feed low-income children during the pandemic was siphoned away in what federal prosecutors describe as the largest pandemic-relief fraud scheme charged in U.S. history. Some of the shell companies and meal sites were operated by Somali Minnesotans, prosecutors say, though the alleged ringleader — Aimee Bock — is a White American.
That sprawling case has now grown to at least 78 defendants, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota.
Fox News says, "Prosecutors say criminals also bilked millions of dollars from Minnesota’s Housing Stabilization Services program — which pays for help finding and keeping housing — as well as the state’s autism-services program by billing for appointments, therapy and casework that never took place."
Former Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson described the scams as "schemes stacked upon schemes" that drained tens of millions of dollars from Medicaid. At least some of those defendants also have ties to the Somali community.
"It feels never-ending," Thompson said in September, when announcing that eight people had been charged with defrauding the housing stabilization services program of around $8.4 million in total. "I have spent my career as a fraud prosecutor and the depth of the fraud in Minnesota takes my breath away. The fraud must be stopped."
Thompson said the eight were part of the "first wave" of prosecutions in the case. The fraudsters, in many instances, spent the cash on luxury cars, lavish lifestyles, and purchasing property at home and in places like Kenya.
The scale of program growth stunned federal officials. The Housing Stabilization Services program was projected to cost $2.6 million annually, but paid out more than $100 million last year. The autism program’s budget jumped from $3 million in 2018 to nearly $400 million in 2023, according to Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The unraveling fraud schemes intensified scrutiny of Walz’s administration, with critics arguing basic safeguards were ignored even as theft ballooned.
Via the City Journal:
Minnesota is drowning in fraud. Billions in taxpayer dollars have been stolen during the administration of Governor Tim Walz alone. Democratic state officials, overseeing one of the most generous welfare regimes in the country, are asleep at the switch. And the media, duty-bound by progressive pieties, refuse to connect the dots.
In many cases, the fraud has allegedly been perpetrated by members of Minnesota’s sizeable Somali community. Federal counterterrorism sources confirm that millions of dollars in stolen funds have been sent back to Somalia, where they ultimately landed in the hands of the terror group Al-Shabaab. As one confidential source put it: “The largest funder of Al-Shabaab is the Minnesota taxpayer.”
Takeaway
The Bible includes numerous stories of corruption, from societal moral decay like in Genesis 6 (earth filled with violence/wickedness, leading to the Flood) and prophets condemning corrupt priests/rulers (Jeremiah, Ezekiel), to specific acts like Achan's theft in Joshua 7, Judges' failures, the sons of Eli (1 Samuel 2), King Ahab & Naboth's vineyard (1 Kings 21), and Judas betraying Jesus, highlighting bribery, abuse of power, false prophets, and general human depravity that leads to judgment.
Old Testament Examples
- Genesis 6: God saw that the earth was corrupt and filled with violence, prompting the Flood.
- Judges: Cycles of Israel's apostasy, oppression, and judges (e.g., Gideon's ephod, Samson's flaws) show moral breakdown.
- 1 Samuel 2: The sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were corrupt priests who abused their office and defiled the Tabernacle.
- 1 Kings 21: King Ahab covets Naboth's vineyard; Jezebel orchestrates Naboth's murder through false witnesses, a clear example of judicial corruption.
- 2 Kings 23: King Josiah defiles high places built for idolatry, showing systemic corruption.
- Jeremiah 6:13: Prophets and priests are given to covetousness and deal falsely.
- Ezekiel 9:9: The land is full of murder and corruption; God sees the people's deeds.
- Matthew 21:12-13: (Jesus Cleanses the Temple): Jesus drives out money changers and sellers, condemning the corruption in His Father's house.
- Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Matthew 21:33-46; Luke 20:9-19): The vineyard tenants, representing corrupt leaders, kill the heir (Jesus).
- Judas Iscariot: Betrays Jesus for silver, a classic act of greed and treachery.
- 2 Peter 2:1-3: Warns of false teachers who will exploit people through greed and bring damnable heresies.
- 1 Corinthians 5:6-8: Paul warns against "a little leaven" (sin/corruption) spreading through the church.
- Ephesians 4:29: "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying."
These stories illustrate that corruption in the Bible spans personal greed, abuse of religious/political power, judicial perversion, and widespread moral decay, often leading to severe divine judgment.
Be Informed. Be Discerning. Be Vigilant. Be Engaged. Be Bold. Be Prayerful.
