Trump targets alleged Minnesota fraud scheme during Mar-a-Lago event
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President Donald Trump railed against allegations of welfare fraud in Minnesota during his speech at a New Year’s Eve celebration at Mar-a-Lago on Wednesday.
“Can you imagine if they stole $18 billion,” Trump said. “That’s what we’ve learned. It’s ridiculous. And California is worse, Illinois is worse, and unfortunately New York is even worse.”
Trump continued: “We’re going to get to the bottom of all this. This was a giant fraud.”
Trump added that he saw Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., on television earlier Wednesday talking about allegations of fraud involving the Somali community.
Footage of Walz’s VP debate touting government support for day care goes viral amid fraud allegations in Minnesota
President Donald Trump speaks to guests during a New Year’s Eve event at his home in Mar-a-Lago on Dec. 31. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
“He was talking about the Somali population and it wasn’t very nice,” Trump said.
Trump’s comments come as Minnesota faces allegations of widespread fraud, with losses running as high as $1 billion and federal prosecutors indicting and charging dozens of people in connection with the alleged fraudulent activity.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt issued a stark warning Wednesday that “people will be handcuffed” as the fallout from allegations of widespread fraud under Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz grows.
MINNESOTA FRAUD COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN CLAIMS WALZ HAS ‘BLINDED’ FRAUD WARNINGS FOR YEARS
President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a campaign event in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
“President Trump is not going to let Governor Walz off the hook,” Leavitt said on “Fox & Friends.”
Walz has been under scrutiny since the fraud issue emerged, and while he publicly acknowledged the problem, he vowed to fix it, saying the situation was “on my watch” and that he was “responsible” for fixing it.
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Governor Tim Walz has been under scrutiny since the fraud problem emerged in Minnesota. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Leavitt added that the Trump administration has increased federal resources to Minnesota and multiple agencies are conducting investigations into the alleged fraud.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it would freeze all child care payments to Minnesota, amid increased scrutiny over accusations of fraud related to child care centers across Minnesota.
