Folks, I’ve spent 32 years in the Air Force—enlisted as an EOD tech clearing bombs, commanding squadrons and wings, surviving the Pentagon on 9/11—and I’ve seen fraud, waste, and corruption up close all over the world. But nothing prepares you for the outright theft happening right now in Minnesota, where billions of our hard-earned tax dollars are being siphoned off in massive fraud schemes, largely tied to Somali immigrant networks exploiting child nutrition, daycare, autism services, health, transportation, and housing programs.
We’re talking over $1 billion confirmed stolen, with federal prosecutors warning it could climb into the multiple billions when all the investigations wrap up. Feeding Our Future alone was a $250 million pandemic scam—the largest COVID relief fraud in the country—with dozens convicted. Now we’ve got independent YouTuber Nick Shirley’s viral videos exposing “daycare centers” raking in millions while sitting empty, and probes into autism therapy and housing stabilization adding hundreds of millions more to the tab. And who’s behind the vast majority of these charges? Over 90% are from the Somali community.
This isn’t about painting with a broad brush—plenty of good folks out there—but when the numbers hit 90%+, we call it what it is: a systemic grift that’s robbing American citizens blind.
Where does that stolen money go? Luxury cars, properties overseas, kickbacks—while our veterans wait months for healthcare appointments, Social Security teeters on insolvency with talks of benefit cuts looming, and hardworking taxpayers foot the bill for it all. Every dollar funneled into these fake programs is a dollar not going to our heroes who fought for this country, not shoring up retirement for seniors who’ve paid in their whole lives, not fixing roads or schools for American families.
And who’s been asleep at the switch? Career politicians like Rep. Tom Emmer, who for years downplayed concerns about unchecked immigration and integration failures in his own state. Minnesotans raised alarms over a decade ago about strains on resources and assimilation, but Emmer brushed it off as bigotry. Now, with the fraud exploding on his watch, he’s finally making noise—but where was that fire when oversight could have prevented this mess? These lifers in Congress prioritize reelection and avoiding “backlash” over protecting taxpayers.
Corrupt government bureaucrats share the blame too—state officials under Gov. Tim Walz who ignored red flags, deleted data, and slow-walked investigations to dodge accusations of racism. They let whistleblowers twist while the grift grew. This is what happens when politicians and administrators spend other people’s money to buy votes from bloc communities: fraud flourishes, and Americans pay the price.
President Trump and the new administration are finally surging FBI and DHS resources to Minnesota, charging dozens more, and talking deportation for those involved—even denaturalization where warranted. Good. But we need more: full audits, severe prison time for the ringleaders, and reforms to stop this nationwide. Private bounty hunters exposing waste? Hell yes—reward those who root it out.
As a combat vet, I know sacrifice. Our troops didn’t bleed overseas so fraudsters could loot the treasury here at home. It’s time to put America First: secure the borders, demand assimilation and deport the criminals, prosecute the thieves relentlessly, and redirect every recovered dollar to veterans’ care, Social Security solvency, and real American needs.
We’ve got the momentum and must look at every state for this immigrant fraud—let’s finish the job and take our country back from the fraudsters and the career politicians enabling them.