Ilhan Omar says Somalis were also victimized in Minnesota fraud scam
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., expressed disappointment Sunday over the framing of the massive “Feeding Our Future” fraud scheme that has entangled members of the Somali community in her state, saying many Somalis also fell victim because they could benefit from the program.
“Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan called the scale of the fraud “shocking” and noted that the Biden-era Justice Department had increased the “spotlight” on Omar’s community by saying it was the largest Covid-19 fraud scheme in the country and that the majority of the reported criminals were Somalis.
“Why do you think this scam was allowed to become so widespread?” Brennan asked.
“I want to say that this has an impact on Somalis, too, because we’re taxpayers in Minnesota, too,” Omar said. he said. “We could have benefited from the program and the stolen money as well. So it’s been really frustrating for people not to acknowledge the fact that we, as Minnesotans, as taxpayers, are really upset and angry about the fraud that’s occurring.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., condemned the brazen fraud in Minnesota as “reprehensible.” (Washington Post via Jabin Botsford/Getty Images)
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT MINNESOTA’S ‘FEEDING OUR FUTURE’ FRAUD AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP’S LATEST CONFLICT
Brennan asked Omar if there was a failure in the Democrat-dominated Minnesota state government.
“This is what I also alluded to in my letter to the AG Secretary to see where things went wrong. How could this amount of money fraudulently disappear without triggering alarms?” Omer asked. “And that’s, you know, something we have to continue to investigate. We have to continue to ask these questions.”
President Donald Trump and other officials have focused on these and other alleged fraud schemes in recent weeks, arguing that the criminal activity was a result of mismanagement and “incompetence” by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat and former vice presidential candidate.
MS NOW HOST SAYS MAJOR MINNESOTA FRAUD SCHEME IS ‘ISOLATION’ IN INTERVIEW WITH ATTORNEY GENERAL
Trump and Omar have been at odds with each other in recent days, with Trump calling Somalis “garbage” and saying they should return to their country. Omar and other critics called the statements bigotry and said Trump was trying to distract from his own policy failures.
The back-and-forth comes as Minnesota comes under renewed scrutiny for alleged mismanagement of federal funds, including doling out money for the nonprofit “Feeding Our Future” program.
Prosecutors labeled the state fraud scheme as follows: biggest pandemic fraud scheme It stems from allegations that the Minnesota nonprofit and its partners defrauded federal child nutrition programs of hundreds of millions of dollars in COVID-19 aid.
The New York Times reported last month: “Law enforcement officials say fraud has taken root in the pockets of Minnesota’s Somali diaspora over the past five years, with scores of people making small fortunes by creating companies that bill government agencies for millions of dollars for social services that are never provided.”
Marco Rubio, President Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, December 2, 2025. (Yuri Gripas/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Omar said she was one of the first members of Congress to investigate what she called a “reprehensible” fraud.
Omar previously told the local outlet KARE 11 News“The alleged fraud scheme orchestrated by ‘Feeding Our Future’ is reprehensible. Using the guise of feeding children to funnel millions of dollars into extravagant spending is abhorrent, and everyone involved in this scheme must be held accountable.”
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION
Fox News Digital’s Brenna Deppisch and Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.
