FBI Director Patel warns elected officials ‘no one’ is exempt from federal scrutiny amid Minnesota probe

FBI Director Kash Patel said his agency is carrying out President Donald Trump’s mandate to enforce the law entirely, warning that elected officials are not exempt from federal scrutiny, following the Justice Department’s grand jury subpoenas Tuesday to five Minnesota government offices.

“No one – elected official, private citizen or otherwise – gets to impede and obstruct a law enforcement investigation. No one,” he said on “Hannity.”

Patel’s remarks come after the Justice Department sent grand jury subpoenas to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and multiple other state officials as part of a probe into whether they conspired to impede federal immigration enforcement operations.

The subpoenas, served by the FBI, seek records and communications tied to the alleged effort.

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The investigation follows a major escalation in immigration enforcement operations across the Twin Cities ordered by the Trump administration. Roughly 3,000 federal immigration officers were deployed – a sizable force in a region where the Minneapolis Police Department has only about 600 officers.

The probe also comes in the aftermath of the Jan. 7 shooting death of Renee Nicole Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer. Her death sparked widespread protests across Minnesota, leading to multiple clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement.

Top Democratic leaders in the state, like Walz and Frey, have strongly opposed the enforcement operations that swept across their state. Gov. Walz at one point declared the state was at “war against the federal government.”

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Joining “Hannity” on Tuesday, Patel credited the administration for prioritizing law enforcement crackdowns in the North Star State and beyond.

“He has supplied law enforcement the resources they need to protect our American communities,” the FBI Director told Fox News. “He has also given us the mandate to enforce the law.”

Patel went on to detail how the federal criminal investigation into the subpoenaed Minnesota officials is expected to unfold.

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“When you have subpoenas outit is not rocket science,” he explained. “Investigations are done by acquiring records, investigations are then furthered by putting witnesses in the grand jury and making a presentment for a case with our partners at the Department of Justice.”

Fox News learned late last week that federal authorities had opened an investigation into Walz and Frey over allegations they impeded law enforcement operations.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison was also among those subpoenaed.

Responding to the news, Walz, Frey and Ellison echoed the same message, saying they are not intimidated.

Walz, a former opponent of President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential race, dismissed the subpoenas as a “partisan distraction” and “political retaliation.”

“The State of Minnesota will not be drawn into political theater,” the governor wrote on X.

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Frey also pushed back, accusing the federal government of weaponizing its power to intimidate local leaders.

“We shouldn’t live in a country where federal law enforcement is used to play politics or crack down on local voices they disagree with,” he wrote on X.

Ellison called the investigation “highly irregular” and noted its timing shortly after his office filed a lawsuit against the administration over its actions in Minnesota.

“Trump is weaponizing the justice system against any leader who dares to stand up to him,” he wrote on X.

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Patel, however, asserted the administration’s efforts are aimed at public safety and made clear the FBI is following Trump’s mandate to lay down the law for all, not excluding elected officials.

“This FBI is committed to working with our interagency and our Department of Justice partners under President Trump’s mandate to make sure Minnesota and every other city across this country is safe,” Patel said.

Trump rips ‘crooked’ Ilhan Omar as House ramps up investigation into exploding net worth

President Donald Trump slammed Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., a member of the far-left “Squad” in the House, over her multimillion-dollar net worth during a news conference from the White House Tuesday afternoon.

Trump called the Somali-born lawmaker from Minnesota “crooked” Tuesday amid a probe by congressional Republicans on the House Oversight Committee looking into how Omar’s wealth exploded after she became a lawmaker. 

In just one year, Omar’s net worth reportedly jumped $30 million, according to financial disclosures first reported last week.

“I was told that Ilhan Omar is worth $30 million,” Trump then quipped. “She never had a job. She’s a crooked congressman. So here you – it’s another one.

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“Nobody talks about the fact that $19 billion, at a minimum, is missing in Minnesota, given to a large degree, but, by Somalians — they’ve taken it. Somalians. Can you imagine? And they don’t do it. A lot of very low-IQ people, they don’t do it. Other people work it out, and they get them money, and they go out and buy Mercedes-Benzes.

“They have no money. They never had money. They never had a life. They never had a government. They never had a country because there’s basically no country. Somalia is not even a country. They don’t have anything that resembles a country. And if it is a country, it’s considered just about the worst in the world. They come here, and they become rich, and they don’t have a job,” Trump complained from the podium in the White House briefing room before turning his focus to Omar. 

Omar denied being a millionaire earlier this year, posting on X that she “barely” has thousands, let alone “millions” and has argued she is being targeted by House Republicans’ investigation.

The concern, according to Republican Oversight Chairman James Comer, is tied to both Omar and her politically connected husband Tim Mynett.

Omar disclosed 2024 evaluations of Rose Lake Capital LLC, a business firm co-founded by her husband, at somewhere between $5 million and $25 million in 2024. 

Just one year before, in 2023, she reported that the same company’s value was between $1 and $1,000.

TRUMP SAYS MEDIA FOCUSES TOO MUCH ON MINNESOTA ICE COVERAGE, NOT ENOUGH ON CORRUPTION ALLEGATIONS

Meanwhile, a winery registered in Santa Rosa, California, that first appeared on Omar’s disclosure reports in 2020, reported a value between $1 million and $5 million in 2024. The company, ESTCRU LLC, was evaluated at just $15,000 to $50,000 the previous year. 

Trump on Tuesday took to the White House briefing room to tout his achievements roughly one year after he was sworn in for his second term, including the arrest of thousands of criminals in Minnesota amid his administration’s federal immigration enforcement efforts in the state. Trump also slammed Minnesota and its leaders for the rampant fraud the Trump administration has been investigating involving the state’s large Somalian population.

“Ilhan Omar, she comes from Somalia, a backward country,” Trump added from the podium Tuesday. “But she’ll come here, and then she wants to tell us how to run our country. ‘The Constitution says that I have a title to this.’ I can’t stand her.”

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In addition to House Republicans, officials within the Trump administration have also reportedly indicated they are aware of allegations against Omar and would be looking into them.

Trump says he hopes Renee Good’s father is still a ‘Trump fan’ after Minneapolis tragedy

President Donald Trump said the death of Renee Good during a confrontation with an Immigration and Customs Enforcment (ICE) agent was a “tragedy” while remarking he hopes the slain woman’s father is still a “tremendous Trump fan.”

“I felt horribly when I was told that the young woman who … had that tragedy. It’s a tragedy. It’s a horrible thing. Everybody would say it, ICE would say the same thing,” Trump said Tuesday during a White House press conference. 

Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of Trump’s second inauguration, and the president joined the White House press briefing to read through a series of his administration’s accomplishments. Amid his lengthy remarks, Trump discussed the fatal shooting of Good in Minneapolis Jan. 7 by an ICE officer. Federal officials have defended the use of force as necessary, alleging Good was using her vehicle as a weapon against an agent before he opened fire. 

The death has sparked condemnation from Democrats and other critics that it was a “murder” at the hands of the government, sparking protests and clashes with federal immigration officers in the Twin Cities in recent days. 

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Trump told the media earlier in January that Good’s father was reportedly a Trump supporter, and he said Tuesday he hopes he still has the father’s support after Good’s death.

“When I learned her, her parents and her father in particular is like — I hope he still is, but, I don’t know — was a tremendous Trump fan. He was all for Trump, loved Trump. And, you know, it’s terrible. I was told that by a lot of people. They said, ‘Oh, he loves you.'”

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“I hope he still feels that way. And it’s hard, hard situation. But her father was a tremendous, and parents, were tremendous Trump fans. It’s so sad. It just happens. It’s terrible,” Trump continued. 

Fox News Digital attempted to reach out to Good’s parents Tuesday afternoon. 

The president repeatedly has described Good’s death as tragic, while also backing ICE and other law enforcement officers amid efforts to deport illegal immigrants. 

Trump’s remarks on Good and her parents came as he celebrated his administration’s efforts to deport violent illegal immigrants from the U.S. as American “insurrectionists” protest the removals. 

“We want to put them in a jail where we know they’re properly ensconced,” he said. “Think of that. Remove tens of thousands of illegal alien gang members, drug dealers, murderers, child predators, human traffickers fraudsters and savage criminals. Why wouldn’t you want them removed?

“The reason is because these are the insurrectionists that are doing this work,” Trump added. 

“You know (federal law enforcement officials are) going to make mistakes sometimes. ICE is going to be too rough with somebody, or, you know, they’re dealing with rough people.” 

911 TRANSCRIPTS, DOCUMENTS DETAIL CHAOTIC SCENE AFTER ICE AGENT FATALLY SHOT RENEE GOOD

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Good’s father has largely avoided the media since the 37-year-old’s death. Her former father-in-law, however, has spoken to the media in recent days, telling Fox News earlier in January that he does not blame anyone involved in the shooting and instead views the tragedy as the result of a series of “bad choices.”

Tax committee Republicans press for Treasury crackdown on nonprofits promoting fraud, ‘anti-American’ hate

FIRST ON FOX: House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith and all 25 Republican members of the committee are urging Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to crack down on nonprofits accused of exploiting the tax code to operate tax-free while promoting “anti-American and/or pro-terrorist ideals” and committing fraud at taxpayers’ expense.

The request marks one of the most aggressive congressional pushes in memory to revoke tax-exempt status, expand audits and rein in what lawmakers describe as systemic failures in policing the nonprofit sector.

In the letter, obtained by Fox News Digital, Smith and the Republican lawmakers wrote to Bessent, who is acting IRS commissioner, and Frank Bisignano, who is the CEO at the IRS, and warned of a growing pattern of tax-exempt organizations pursuing activity that falls outside legitimate charitable purposes. 

Smith and the lawmakers said they were writing to “express concern” over “significant fraud, waste, and abuse of taxpayer dollars” and urged the IRS to “transition from the laissez-faire approach implemented under the Biden administration and utilize a more hands-on approach” when overseeing nonprofits.

COMER VOWS MINNESOTA FRAUD PROBE WILL EXPAND TO OTHER STATES AMID MOUNTING SCRUTINY

They cited the massive fraud scandal in Minnesota, in which officials at the nonprofit Feeding Our Future were prosecuted and convicted for stealing an estimated $250 million from federal social welfare programs intended to feed low-income children. The case has resulted in dozens of indictments and criminal convictions. Amid the widening scandal, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz chose not to run for a third term.

Bessent announced last month that he was opening an investigation into allegations that some of the stolen funds may have been routed to regions of Somalia where they could have ended up benefiting Al-Shabaab, a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization.

The case, Smith and the lawmakers wrote, “calls into question the current safeguards in place to protect taxpayer dollars.”

“It is unconscionable that the Biden Administration’s failure to hold the United States’s non-profit sector accountable has not only resulted in the theft of billions of American taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars, but the potential enrichment of foreign terrorist organizations overseas,” Smith told Fox News Digital Tuesday. “As the Ways and Means Committee continues to investigate every corner of the tax-exempt sector to root out this waste, fraud, abuse and illegal activity, it is now abundantly clear the system is in desperate need of an overhaul.”

“I applaud President Trump’s bold move to hold bad actors in the Minnesota Somali fraud scheme accountable and look forward to working with his Administration to ensure this rampant fraud is ended once and for all,” Smith added.

Along with Smith, the other 25 Republican lawmakers from the Ways and Means Committee who signed the letter are: Reps. Jodey Arrington, Aaron Bean, Vern Buchanan, Mike Carey, Ron Estes, Randy Feenstra, Michelle Fischbach, Brian Fitzpatrick, Kevin Hern, Darin LaHood, Mike Kelly, David Kustoff, Max Miller, Nicole Malliotakis, Carol Miller, Blake Moore, Nathaniel Moran, Greg Murphy, Adrian Smith, Lloyd Smucker, David Schweikert, W. Gregory Steube, Claudia Tenney, Beth Van Duyne and Rudy Yakym.

The House Ways and Means Committee has referred 11 nonprofits to the Treasury Department for investigation and revocation of their tax-exempt benefits, citing allegations of antisemitism, illegal activity, terrorism ties and foreign influence. The organizations have denied wrongdoing.

They include The People’s Forum, a New York-based nonprofit that has organized nationwide anti-ICE protests over the past two weeks with its related organization, the Party for Socialism and Liberation. The People’s Forum is under scrutiny for alleged ties to the Chinese Communist Party through its funding networks. Its primary donor has been Neville Roy Singham, an American-born tech entrepreneur living in Shanghai who has publicly embraced Marxism and promoted China’s political and economic model.

The People’s Forum has organized a national day of protests Tuesday with other organizations, including the Party for Socialism and Liberation, in their efforts to dismantle U.S. “imperialism.” 

In the letter, Smith and the Republican lawmakers said the committee is “actively investigating American non-profits operating as extensions of the Chinese Communist Party.”

Earlier this month, Smith referred the Council on American-Islamic Relations-California for investigation and potential revocation of its tax-exempt status, alleging it may have “materially supported unlawful conduct, including endorsing and assisting disruptive and illegal campus encampments that led to hundreds of arrests across California.” He also raised questions about the group’s “reported involvement in overtly political activity and protests that devolved into chaos, violence and law breaking” in “conduct that may violate longstanding restrictions on tax-exempt organizations.”

Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code was enacted as part of the Revenue Act of 1913 to encourage and formalize charitable, civic, labor and other public-interest activities by granting tax-exempt status to qualifying organizations, and today it contains 29 categories of tax-exempt entities, including 501(c)(3) charities, 501(c)(4) social-welfare groups, 501(c)(5) labor unions, 501(c)(6) trade associations and other specialized nonprofit organizations.

There are an estimated 1.8 million tax-exempt organizations in the United States, according to the IRS, with an estimated $1.4 trillion in annual revenues, making tougher oversight potentially far-reaching.

An organization applies for the special status, and, if they qualify, they are exempt from paying federal income taxes on money they receive that is related to their mission, such as donations, grants and program revenue. In addition, contributions made to these nonprofit organizations are also tax-deductible for donors, making the status especially valuable.

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Last week, Bessent announced the launch of IRS audits of financial institutions that “facilitated the laundering of Minnesota funds,” along with the creation of a task force focused on fraud and abuse involving 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.

In their letter, Smith and Republican lawmakers urged Bessent to “use your authority at the IRS to hold tax-exempt organizations accountable” and to ensure that schemes like Feeding Our Future “cannot happen again.”

Together, they said, the cases illustrate a systemic failure to police the nonprofit sector.

Nonprofit organizations drew particular scrutiny after they led anti-Israel protests following the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas terrorists. In late September 2024, Smith sent a letter to New York Attorney General Letitia James urging an investigation into The People’s Forum and the Westchester Peace Action Committee Foundation, known also as WESPAC, alleging they had “aided and abetted riots and unauthorized encampments across the country.”

“This conduct is designed to sow chaos and discord in our society,” Smith wrote, adding that it had “involved illegal activities.”

The committee has also urged the revocation of the nonprofit status of Americans for Justice in Palestine Educational Foundation and American Muslims for Palestine, warning about “alarming conduct” by the two groups in their anti-Israel protests. 

On July 24, 2024, Zaid Mohammed Mahdawi, 26, a leader of the Richmond chapter of American Muslims for Palestine, climbed atop a monument at Columbus Circle in front of Union Station and spray-painted an ominous message: “Hamas is Comin’.” He included the inverted red triangle, which is a symbol that Hamas terrorists use to designate enemy targets. The FBI arrested Mahdawi for destruction of government property, and he was sentenced to 10 days in prison. The ANSWER Coalition, which works closely with The People’s Forum, obtained the permit for that day’s protest, where a U.S. flag was also burnt. 

Smith has also asked for the revocation of the tax status of the People Media Project, which publishes “The Palestine Chronicle,” alleging the group may have been “circumventing its tax-exempt charitable purpose by supporting the terrorist organization, Hamas.” The concern followed reporting that a contributor to the outlet allegedly participated in holding Israeli hostages in Gaza.

READ THE LETTER – APP USERS, CLICK HERE:

He has also urged revocation of the nonprofit status of Jewish Voice for Peace, a co-organizer of many anti-Israel protests that have turned antisemitic, and the Alliance for Global Justice, a 501(c)(3) that served as the fiscal sponsor for Samidoun, a group designated by the Treasury Department as a “sham charity” that allegedly raises funds for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization.

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In November, former Georgia state Rep. Stacey Abrams shut down her nonprofit, the New Georgia Project, after the Way and Means Committee raised questions about the 501(c)(3) organization contributing funds to Abrams’ 2018 gubernatorial race.

Biden push to revive Ted Kennedy-era law now haunts Democrats as charges loom in Minnesota church riot

The Biden administration resurrected a 1994 law against obstructing abortion clinics or religious worship to prosecute protesters, but now conservatives are seeking that the same policy be applied after leftist agitators crashed a Minneapolis church service.

The FACE Act, drafted by the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., a noted Catholic, and signed by former President Bill Clinton, prohibits intentionally injuring or intimidating people seeking “reproductive care” services, and also has a section protecting people “exercising … religious freedom at a place of religious worship.”

Clinton also used his remarks signing the law to introduce his oft-cited view that abortion should be “safe, legal and rare.”

“Enacting this bill to provide freedom of access to clinics has been a priority because protecting the freedoms of our citizens is surely chief among the responsibilities of the President of the United States,” Clinton added at the time. “This bill is designed to eliminate violence and coercion. It is not a strike against the First Amendment; far from it.”

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The Biden Justice Department pursued FACE Act charges against dozens of people, which was seen as an uptick over prior administrations that all utilized the law.

Alliance Defending Freedom’s Erin Hawley testified before the House Judiciary Committee during that time saying: “Instead of applying the FACE Act in an even-handed way, the Biden DOJ has weaponized the Act to target pro-life advocates.”

The most-reported case was that of Mark Houck, a pro-life supporter from Kintnersville, Pennsylvania, who was arrested outside a Philadelphia abortion clinic following a run-in with an activist.

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Houck often publicly prayed and tried to counsel people outside the center, and on that day in 2021, he was reportedly confronted by Bruce Love, an escort for an abortion patient.

According to a recounting by the Heritage Foundation’s Cully Stimson, Love previously encountered Houck multiple times and expressed vulgar slurs to him, when Houck “defended” his 12-year-old son from one of Love’s advances and the man fell.

Stimson noted that the case was “so weak” that Philadelphia County District Attorney Larry Krasner, a Democrat, declined to file any charges against Houck.

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But, the FBI later raided Houck’s home, frightening his children, and he faced 11 years in prison and a $350,000 fine. Houck was ultimately acquitted.

Since taking office, President Donald Trump has pardoned dozens of FACE Act convicts, including a priest and an 89-year-old Soviet concentration camp survivor arrested during a “blockade” of a Michigan center.

The pendulum has swung so far to the other side of the issue that conservatives are now citing the Biden administration’s use of the FACE Act against agitators who disrupted a Minneapolis church service, reportedly because one of the reverends is connected with a local ICE office.

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The Trump DOJ promptly opened an investigation into the incident, with Civil Rights Division chief Harmeet Dhillon citing the FACE Act and saying she is reviewing “potential violations [of it] by these people desecrating a house of worship and interfering with Christian worshippers.”

“Any violation of federal law will be prosecuted,” added Attorney General Pam Bondi.

West Coast Baptist College president Paul Chappell called out a former CNN host who was featured among the protests, and called for the law to be enforced.

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“We condemn the actions of Don Lemon and the group of activists who stormed Cities Church today in St. Paul, Minnesota, in clear violation of the FACE Act,” Chappell said in a statement.

“Christians everywhere should demand that the Department of Justice arrest those who participated. We must protect religious liberty in this country.”

Lemon later hosted anti-Trump actor D.L. Hughley and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on his podcast, where Ellison claimed the law was designed to “protect the rights of people seeking their reproductive rights to be protected …” and that the law was being “stretched” in the church case.

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Meanwhile, in March, Reps. Sean Casten, D-Ill., Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., and Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., urged Bondi to enforce the FACE Act in earnest, albeit citing the abortion services provision.

In response, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz condemned the agitators, with a spokesperson telling Fox News: “The governor has repeatedly and unequivocally urged protesters to do so peacefully. While people have a right to speak out, he in no way supports interrupting a place of worship.”

Democrat senator accuses Trump of ‘declaring war’ on Minnesota with Insurrection Act threat

Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., warned that President Donald Trump’s growing threats against her home state, including possibly invoking a rarely used, centuries-old executive authority, were tantamount to a declaration of war.

Last week, Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act in Minnesota as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents continue to clash with agitators in Minneapolis.

“The president’s statements today essentially amount to threats of declaring war on Minnesota,” Smith said. “And in a time when we should be trying to keep people safe and finding a path forward, he continues to throw gasoline on the fire in ways that are really dangerous.”

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The Insurrection Act is a seldom-used executive power first created in 1807. It’s designed to allow the president to deploy the military to quell rebellions and enforce federal laws.

When asked about Trump’s threats to invoke the power, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said, “I think he’s threatened in other places, other states, too.”

“We’ll see what happens,” Thune said. “Hopefully, local officials are working with federal law enforcement, ICE and other agencies, but also the local law enforcement officials being able to settle things down.”

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Over the last two centuries, it has only been triggered 30 times, most recently by former President George H.W. Bush in the early 1990s to suppress growing unrest during the L.A. riots following the acquittal of four police officers charged with using excessive force against Rodney King.

Trump floated invoking the Insurrection Act in a post on Truth Social, where he warned, “If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of ICE,” he would pull the trigger on the sparsely used power.

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He later told reporters outside the White House that “if I needed it, I’d use it. I don’t think there’s any reason right now to use it, but if I needed it, I’d use it. It’s very powerful.”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and ICE have been major talking points in Congress, particularly after the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent earlier this month.

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The latest DHS funding bill, which was tied into a four-bill $1.2 trillion spending package released Tuesday, includes several restrictions on funding for the agency, like detailed reports on operations, expenses, detention facilities and more, though it doesn’t slash its budget.

Congress opens ‘industrial-scale fraud’ probe in Minnesota, warns Walz demands are ‘just the beginning’

EXCLUSIVE: Minnesota is going to be the first state that will be in the crosshairs of a groundbreaking and comprehensive congressional investigation into systemic social services fraud, waste and abuse, House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie told Fox News Digital.

Guthrie’s panel is demanding audits, provider records, fraud referrals and internal communications dating back several years, signaling a deep dive into whether state officials ignored warnings or allowed fraud to flourish – while working with a major HHS sub-agency to help look into misuse of taxpayer dollars at a wide scale.

“The extensive fraud schemes being perpetrated in Minnesota have wreaked havoc on government-funded health programs,” the committee told Fox News Digital via a joint statement from Guthrie and Reps. John Joyce of Pennsylvania and Morgan Griffith of Virginia, both Republicans.

GREGG JARRETT: IF WALZ IS CHARGED IN MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL, HIS BEST DEFENSE IS INCOMPETENCE

“We have an obligation to ensure finite taxpayer dollars are being used responsibly, and that the most vulnerable Americans are not being exploited to the benefit of fraudsters and foreign actors,” Guthrie, Joyce and Griffith added.

“This letter is the next step in the committee’s work to root out fraud and restore program integrity in our federal health programs nationwide.”

A source familiar with the investigation said Minnesota is likely only the beginning of federal intervention into what the committee dubbed “industrial-scale” fraud within, particularly, state-administered Medicaid programs.

MINNESOTA’S WELFARE FRAUD DISASTER EXPOSES A NATIONAL SYSTEM DESIGNED TO FAIL

“Minnesota is just the beginning,” the source said.

Staff on Guthrie’s committee were also party to recent briefings with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Justice Department.

In its letter to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minnesota Human Services Temporary Commissioner Shireen Gandhi, the committee said the Land of 10,000 Lakes is also under investigation by CMS, led by Administrator Mehmet Oz, on a number of fronts.

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As Oz’s office conducts its own review, Guthrie is demanding Walz turn over extensive records and written answers on the current integrity of federally funded programs, including steps being taken to stop millions in fraudulent payments flowing out of Minnesota.

By the end of the month, Walz will also be expected to explain what measures have been put in place since 2019 to detect fraud, waste and abuse and what “enhancements” have been made over the past year, as the scandal came to the fore.

The committee also demanded to know what types of audits Medicaid-related programs are undergoing, the process for making criminal referrals for suspected fraud, what Gandhi’s agency is doing to sanction or disenroll fraudulent providers and how the state vets Medicaid Service Providers for compliance with federal law.

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“Is DHS [the Minnesota Department of Human Services] revalidating all Medicaid providers amid recent state and federal indictments and prosecutions of fraud? If so, please provide details and any relevant documentation regarding this process and the status of those efforts? Does DHS collect data on Medicaid programs with abnormal or statistically significant increases in provider enrollment or claims over time, including programs which greatly exceed their estimated cost upon enactment?”

By the end of the month, the committee is seeking to compel Walz to also turn over all audits conducted that relate to 14 social services programs that the state previously deemed to be prone to “high-risk provider types” – or as some critics would say, ripe for use by fraudulent medical-service providers.

Some of the programs identified include adult companion services, mental health and rehab services, “community-first” services, night supervision services and recuperative care.

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Guthrie, Joyce and Griffith are also seeking all communications between Walz, his staff and state Medicaid Commissioner John Connolly.

“The swath of criminal schemes coming to light in Minnesota include over-billing, false records, identity theft, and phantom claims in Medicaid social service and health programs for the elderly and disabled, people struggling with addiction, and homelessness,” Guthrie wrote to Walz.

The committee also claimed that whistleblowers were “willfully ignored” or had their concerns “suppressed” by the Walz administration, while those who tried to report fraud faced retaliation.

USDA IMMEDIATELY SUSPENDS ALL FEDERAL FUNDING TO MINNESOTA AMID FRAUD INVESTIGATION

It also identified a handful of programs that had lower barriers to entry, and therefore would be attractive for fraudulent usage.

Guthrie said the 14 high-risk social services programs cost Minnesota nearly $4 billion in state and federal tax dollars.

“Ensuring Medicaid program integrity is critical to preserving access to vital health care services for those that need it most,” the letter read.

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“Every dollar stolen from the Medicaid program by fraudsters is taken from children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Walz for comment.

Trump says media focuses too much on Minnesota ICE coverage, not enough on corruption allegations

President Donald Trump says there is too much media attention on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Minnesota and not enough scrutiny of what he calls widespread corruption and stolen taxpayer money in state government.

Trump argued on Truth Social that the imbalance in coverage reflects misplaced priorities, saying the focus on immigration enforcement distracts from what he described as more consequential allegations of corruption and misuse of public funds by Minnesota officials.

“In Minnesota, there is too much media attention on ICE, who have removed some of the worst murderers and criminals in the World, people let into our Country by Crooked Joe Biden’s horrendous Open Border Policy, and not enough attention paid to the staggering sums of money stolen from the State by corrupt Minnesota politicians,” Trump said in the post.

Trump did not cite specific cases or dollar figures, though his comments come as Minnesota Democrats have faced scrutiny in recent years over spending programs and ethics questions, while ICE enforcement actions have drawn protests and legal challenges in the state.

MIKE DAVIS: WHAT IS HAPPENING IN MINNESOTA IS WHY WE HAVE THE INSURRECTION ACT

Federal prosecutors have accused Minnesota of losing potentially billions of dollars to fraud across multiple government programs, including child care subsidies, food assistance and autism services.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison have disputed the scale of the alleged losses. They’ve accused Republicans in the federal government of exaggerating the figures for political purposes, while acknowledging the state is reviewing how funds were improperly obtained and distributed.

The political fallout from the fraud allegations led Walz earlier this month to drop a bid for a third term as governor.

TRUMP ASSERTS ILHAN OMAR SHOULD BE JAILED OR BOOTED TO SOMALIA

Congress has also opened an investigation through the House Oversight Committee. Chairman James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky, told Fox News Digital earlier this month the probe could serve as a blueprint for examining similar cases in other states.

Trump returned to the issue Sunday in a separate social media post, accusing Minnesota Democrats of using federal law enforcement operations to divert attention from what he described as massive fraud within the state.

Posting on Truth Social, Trump said federal agents in Minneapolis and St. Paul were targeting violent criminals.

ILLEGAL ALIEN WITH 24 CONVICTIONS AMONG ‘WORST OF THE WORST’ ARRESTED IN MINNESOTA ICE OPERATION: DHS

“ICE is removing some of the most violent criminals in the World from our Country, and bring them back home, where they belong. Why is Minnesota fighting this? Do they really want murderers and drug dealers to be ensconced in their community? The thugs that are protesting include many highly paid professional agitators and anarchists. Is this really what Minnesota wants?” Trump wrote.

Trump also singled out Walz and Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat, accusing them of deflecting attention from the alleged fraud.

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“They don’t mind because it keeps the focus of attention off the 18 Billion Dollar, Plus, FRAUD, that has taken place in the State!” Trump wrote. “Don’t worry, we’re on it!” 

Federal law enforcement officers have faced protests and harassment from demonstrators in Minnesota in recent weeks, according to authorities. Federal prosecutors are also examining whether Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey took actions that impeded law enforcement efforts.

‘We’re back to COVID’: Minnesota restaurant owners say ICE enforcement is crippling their businesses

Restaurants in the Twin Cities area have sounded off that the ICE raids to enforce immigration law have put a strain on their businesses. 

The Minnesota Star Tribune interviewed a variety of restaurateurs in the Twin Cities about how their businesses have been impacted by ICE under President Donald Trump. Mass deportations and enforcement of American immigration law have been some of Trump’s most consistent flagship policies, but Latin-American and Somali business owners are not pleased. 

“As immigration enforcement activity increases across the Twin Cities and the suburbs, food businesses are adjusting, making visible changes such as locking doors to screen customers before entry, cutting hours, switching to takeout-only service, temporarily closing and consolidating space. Many restaurants are operating short-staffed, with owners taking on multiple roles simply to keep things going,” the Star Tribune reported.

Rolando Diaz, the owner of Marna’s Eatery and Lounge in Robbinsdale, noted that his restaurant is feeling the strain of current events. His restaurant is one of many that has become short-staffed because many employees are reportedly afraid to come to work for fear of being caught by immigration enforcement efforts.

WHITE HOUSE SAYS WALZ, FREY INCITED CHAOS AFTER ANTI-ICE MOB STORMS MINNEAPOLIS CHURCH

“I’m a really positive guy, but I’m also very realistic,” Diaz told the local news outlet, noting that ICE’s efforts in the area are “not something that’s gonna be done in a week, so we’re just preparing for the hit now.”

“During COVID, people were afraid to go out because they were afraid to get sick and die,” he noted. “Now they’re afraid to get out of the house and never come back to it.”

Another restaurant owner, Miguel Lopez of the Homi Restaurant on University Avenue in St. Paul, offered a similarly grim comparison, saying, “We are pretty much back to COVID.”

“I’ve had customers and friends that have been stopped on their way here and asked for papers,” he told the local news outlet. “As a business, we’re hurting.”

According to the Star Tribune, Venezuelan-born restaurateur Soleil Ramirez, the owner of Crasqui, “stopped taking walk-ins after a recent incident in which Ramirez said a man who identified himself as an ICE agent dined at the restaurant. Community members arrived for support and stayed until closing.”

NOEM HAMMERS WALZ, FREY FOR IGNORING 1,360 ICE DETAINERS FOR CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIENS

She noted that as an immigrant, she needed to train family members to run the restaurant in case she is detained. 

“I need to have a plan B as a business person,” she said. “But also as a human.”

ICE enforcement has impacted other cultures’ businesses as well.

“At Albi Kitchen on the edge of downtown Minneapolis, owner Fardowsa Abdul Ali said her colorful cafe with Somali sweets and sambusas was already struggling, ever since a viral video about a nearby daycare showed images of her business,” the local news outlet reported, later adding that she has faced harassment on her phone as a result of the video.

“I really lost a lot of customers,” Ali said. “They don’t come here.”

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She said she has considered hiring security for the café but said she can’t afford it. 

“I don’t feel safe, to be honest,” Ali said. “I came to this country to be safe, not scared.”

From Caracas to Chicago: Trump’s Article II powers face their biggest tests yet

President Donald Trump has spent the bulk of his second White House term testing the limits of his Article II authorities, both at home and abroad – a defining constitutional fight that legal experts expect to continue to play out in the federal courts for the foreseeable future.

These actions have included the U.S. capture of Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro, who was deposed during a U.S. military raid in Caracas earlier this month, and Trump’s continued fight to deploy National Guard troops in Democrat-led localities, despite the stated objections of state and local leaders.

The moves have drawn reactions ranging from praise to sharp criticism, while raising fresh legal questions about how far a sitting president can go in wielding power at home and abroad.

Legal experts told Fox News Digital in a series of interviews that they do not expect Trump’s executive powers to be curtailed, at least not significantly or immediately, by the federal courts in the near-term.

TRUMP OUSTING OF MADURO DRAWS PARALLELS TO US RAID IN PANAMA – BUT THERE ARE SOME MAJOR CONTRASTS

Despite near-certain challenges from Maduro – who would likely argue any U.S. arrest in Venezuela is illegal, echoing Manuel Noriega’s failed strategy decades ago – experts say Trump’s Justice Department would have little trouble citing court precedent and prior Office of Legal Counsel guidance to justify his arrest and removal.

U.S. presidents have long enjoyed a wider degree of authority on foreign affairs issues – including acting unilaterally to order extraterritorial arrests. Like other U.S. presidents, Trump can cite guidance published in the late 1980s to argue Maduro’s arrest was made within the “national interest” or to protect U.S. persons and property.

Even if an arrest were viewed as infringing on another country’s sovereignty, experts say Trump could cite ample court precedent and longstanding Office of Legal Counsel and Justice Department guidance to argue the action was legally sound.

A 1989 memo authored by then-U.S. Assistant Attorney General Bill Barr has surfaced repeatedly as one of the strongest arguments Trump could cite to justify Maduro’s capture. That OLC memo states that “the president, pursuant to his inherent constitutional authority, can authorize enforcement actions independent of any statutory grant of power.” It also authorizes FBI agents to effectuate arrests ordered by the president under the “Take Care” clause of the U.S. Constitution, and says the authority to order extraterritorial arrests applies even if it impinges “on the sovereignty of other countries.”

Importantly, federal courts have read these powers to apply even in instances where Congress has not expressly granted statutory authorization to intervene.

DEFIANT MADURO DECLARES HE IS A ‘PRISONER OF WAR’ IN FIRST US COURT APPEARANCE

“When federal interests are at stake, the president, under Article II, has the power to protect them,” Josh Blackman, a constitutional law professor at the South Texas College of Law, told Fox News Digital in an interview. 

That’s because Article II, at its core, is “the power for a U.S. president to protect [its] people,” Blackman said. 

“The reason why we detained Maduro was to effectuate an arrest. DOJ personnel and FBI agents were there to arrest him and read him his rights. And the reason why we used 150 aircraft, and all the other military equipment, was to protect the people who were going to arrest Maduro,” he added. “It was a law enforcement operation, but [with] military backing to protect them – so Article II does factor in here, indirectly.” 

Though Trump himself has not cited a legal justification for the invasion, senior administration officials have, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who described Maduro’s arrest respectively, as a mission to indict two “fugitives of justice,” and as a “joint military and law enforcement raid.”

In Minnesota, next steps for Trump are a bit more fraught. 

Trump’s National Guard deployment efforts were stymied by the Supreme Court in December, after the high court halted Trump’s National Guard deployments under Title 10. 

Trump had deployed the federalized troops to Illinois and Oregon last year to protect ICE personnel. But the high court issued an interim order rejecting Trump’s bid, noting that under Title 10, the administration could not federalize the National Guard until it first showed they tried to authorize the regular military to enforce the laws but could not do so. 

Some court watchers have noted that the ruling essentially closes off alternatives for Trump to act.

Instead, Trump could opt to enact his Article II “protective powers” domestically via a more sweeping and extreme alternative.

MIKE DAVIS: WHAT IS HAPPENING IN MINNESOTA IS WHY WE HAVE THE INSURRECTION ACT

This includes the use of the Insurrection Act to call up active-duty U.S. troops and order them deployed to Minnesota and elsewhere. 

The Insurrection Act is a broad tool that gives presidents the authority to deploy military forces in the U.S. when “unlawful obstructions, combinations, or assemblages, or rebellion” make it “impracticable to enforce the laws.” 

Critics note it is a powerful, far-reaching statute that could grant Trump an expansive set of powers to act domestically in ways that are not reviewable by Congress or by the courts.

Jack Goldsmith, a Harvard Law professor and former U.S. Assistant Attorney General, noted this possibility in a recent chat with former White House counsel Robert Bauer. By “closing off this other statute,” he said, the Supreme Court “may have, some argue, driven the president in the direction of the Insurrection Act because this other source of authority was not available.”

Trump allies, for their part, have argued that the president has few other options at his disposal in the wake of the Supreme Court’s interim ruling.

Chad Wolf, the America First Policy Institute’s chair of homeland security and immigration, told Fox News Digital last week that Trump could have “little choice” but to invoke the Insurrection Act.  

“If the situation on the ground in Minneapolis continues to grow violent, with ICE officers being targeted and injured as well as other violent acts … Trump will have little choice,” he said. 

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Experts are split on to what degree there is a through-line between the two issues.

Blackman, the South Texas College of Law professor, said the “point of connection” in Trump’s actions is the presidential “power of protection” under Article II, which he said applies both abroad and at home. “The president can protect his law enforcement domestically, and he can protect his law enforcement abroad, both under Article II.”

House Republicans call Minnesota fraud probe ‘tip of the iceberg’ as more blue states face scrutiny

The ongoing investigations into whether widespread fraud has roiled Minnesota’s social welfare programs could soon spread to other blue states, if House Republicans get their way.

Several GOP lawmakers told Fox News Digital they wanted to see probes expanded into New York, California, Illinois, and Wisconsin, among other areas, as both Congress and the federal government bear down on Gov. Tim Walz’s administration.

“Many in California and representatives from New York are telling us that what is happening in Minnesota — the fraud, the daycares, the fake use of daycares and the embezzlement of American taxpayer money, billions of dollars — is just the tip of the iceberg,” Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital. 

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., said all states should be investigated, particularly for potential COVID-19 pandemic-era fraud within the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

MINNESOTA AG BLASTS HOUSE HEARING ON FRAUD SCANDAL IN HIS STATE : ‘A LOT OF BULLS— FROM REPUBLICANS’

“The bottom line is we obviously have made it very, very easy to defraud the federal government. We know that that went on during COVID with the PPP dollars, with a lot of the money that was flowing out. You know, shame on us for not policing that,” Harris said. “Honestly, we should look at all states.”

Federal attorneys have accused the state of Minnesota of losing potentially billions of dollars to fraud across multiple programs including childcare, food aid, and autism assistance.

State officials like Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison have accused Republicans in the federal government of inflating that number for political purposes but have conceded that they are working within Minnesota to root out how and why some money did go to fraudulent means.

‘TIP OF THE ICEBERG’: SENATE REPUBLICANS PRESS GOV WALZ OVER MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL

The political pressure from the scandal forced Walz to drop his bid for a third term earlier this month.

In addition to the federal government, Congress is also engaged in an investigation into the matter, led by the House Oversight Committee.

Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., told Fox News Digital earlier this month that the probe will likely serve as a blueprint to investigate other states.

COMER SAYS WALZ ‘RETALIATED’ AGAINST WHISTLEBLOWERS WHO WARNED OF MINNESOTA FRAUD FOR YEARS

Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., told Fox News Digital he wanted to see that probe expanded into Democrat strongholds like California and New York, as well as Illinois, which borders his home state of Indiana.

“If it’s happening in Minnesota, I am sure it’s happened in California,” Stutzman said. “I think that this is something that should be investigated not only in California, but also in Illinois, and also New York and other states. If anything, the burden of proof is on our governors across the country to show that they … have it under control.”

Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., alleged blue states were more vulnerable than red states.

BESSENT BLAMES WALZ AS TREASURY PROBES WHETHER MINNESOTA FRAUD FUNDS REACHED TERROR GROUP AL-SHABAB

“I think that we need to go after New York, California,” Fine said. “I don’t think you’ll find this in red states, because we actually care about the future of the country. But I think in places with unified Democrat control, I think you’re going to see widespread fraud everywhere.”

And Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., said his own home state of Wisconsin should be investigated as well.

“Every state should be examined, including the state of Wisconsin, because I believe that the state of Wisconsin under the Evers administration has been cooking the books for our SNAP program,” Van Orden told Fox News Digital.

“When you get to California, Illinois, and New York, that’s gonna make Minnesota look like you just had lunch at Taco Bell.”

If those blue states are targeted, allegations of fraud could emerge as a new political cudgel for House Republicans as they fight an uphill battle to retain the majority in Congress this November.

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Seats in states like Wisconsin, New York, and California in particular could all prove pivotal to controlling the House of Representatives for both sides.

A spokesperson for California Gov. Gavin Newsom defended his record in fighting fraud when reached by Fox News Digital on Monday.

“Since 2019, the Governor has blocked over $125 billion in fraud, arrested criminal parasites leaching off of taxpayers, and protected taxpayers from the exact kind of scam artists Trump celebrates, excuses, and pardons. Despite this, the myths about California continue to circulate,” the spokesperson said.

Newsom is notably expected to be a top contender in what’s likely to be a crowded 2028 Democratic White House primary.

Fox News Digital also reached out to governor’s offices in Wisconsin, New York, and Illinois for comment.

White House says Walz, Frey incited chaos after anti-ICE mob storms Minneapolis church

The White House slammed a mob of anti-ICE agitators who reportedly stormed into a Twin Cities church Sunday, accusing local left-wing leaders — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey — of inciting the chaos. 

“There is no low these radical leftists won’t stoop to,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital Monday morning. “Jacob Frey and Tim Walz have whipped these rioters into a frenzy and turned them loose to wreak havoc on Minneapolis.” 

“Frey and Walz should be ashamed for inciting such chaos, but the Trump Administration will continue enforcing the law,” she added. 

Jackson was reacting to a mob comprised of dozens of agitators allegedly storming into the Cities Church sanctuary in St. Paul on Sunday midway through church services, throwing worship into chaos, Fox Digital previously reported. Protesters claimed the pastor was a local ICE official. 

VIRAL VIDEO SHOWS ICE AGENT TELLING AGITATORS THEY’RE DISRUPTING ARREST OF CHILD SEX OFFENDER IN MINNESOTA

Department of Justice officials vowed Sunday to open an investigation into the disruption, specifically probing for federal civil rights violations “by these people desecrating a house of worship and interfering with Christian worshipers,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said. 

Attorney General Pam Bondi added in a statement Sunday that “attacks against law enforcement and the intimidation of Christians are being met with the full force of federal law.”

Video footage of the church protests spreading on social media does not show local police on the scene deterring the chaos. 

Fox News Digital reached out to the Minneapolis Police Department Monday for comment on the matter, and was redirected to the St. Paul Police Department as the church is located within that department’s jurisdiction. Fox Digital reached out to the St. Paul police department Monday morning and has yet to receive a reply. 

ICE SAYS 2 DEMONSTRATORS WERE ARRESTED IN MINNESOTA FOR ALLEGEDLY ASSAULTING OFFICERS

Chaos has broken out in Minneapolis in recent weeks as agitators take to the streets to protest federal law enforcement officials. Federal officers converged on the state in early January as a sweeping fraud case came to light, which has led to dozens of arrests, mostly including members of Minneapolis’ large Somali population. 

Protests and criticisms against ICE heightened Jan. 7, when a federal officer fatally shot protester Renee Good. Federal officials say Good used her car as a weapon against the agent, arguing he acted in self-defense when he fired his weapon. 

Democrats and administration officials have called the shooting a “murder” as they speak out against the administration’s deportation efforts of illegal immigrants. 

ACTING ICE DIRECTOR DEFENDS AGENCY’S FOCUS ON TARGETING CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIENS, DETAILS THREAT TO AGENTS

Frey rejected the Trump administration’s characterization of the immigration crackdown in Minnesota during a Sunday appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” claiming the surge of federal agents has made residents feel targeted rather than protected.

“This is not about safety. What this is about is coming into our city by the thousands and terrorizing people simply because they’re Latino or Somali,” Frey said. “People in Minneapolis are speaking up. They’re speaking up peacefully. They’re standing up for their neighbors. And this is not just about resisting Trump. This is about loving and caring for the people that call this city home. And it’s been inspiring.” 

Fox News Digital reached out to the mayor’s office and governor’s office for comment Monday morning regarding the White House’s statement regarding the church disruption but did not immediately receive replies. 

MINNEAPOLIS POSTS ANTI-ICE VIDEO PROMOTING ‘PEACEFUL PROTEST’ AND UNITY

The mob converging on a church comes as the Department of Homeland Security has warned that violence targeting ICE personnel has spiked in recent months. In a late November Homeland Security release, the agency said it logged 238 assaults on ICE law enforcement officers from Jan. 21, 2025, through Nov. 21, 2025, compared with 19 assaults during the same span in 2024 — a 1,153% increase.

Fallout from Minnesota’s sprawling fraud scandal bled into the state’s political turmoil earlier in January, when Walz announced he would not seek re-election — a decision that came amid intensifying scrutiny of oversight failures during his tenure. Walz, who has served as governor since 2019, acknowledged the wrongdoing occurred on his watch and said state systems failed to catch it sooner, while arguing Republicans were inflating and “sensationalizing” 

Frey, when asked about the scandal earlier in January, said “everybody could have done more” to stop the fraud, but cautioned against blaming broader communities for the alleged crimes of individuals — a point he made while pushing back on rhetoric that has focused on the Somali American community.

MINNESOTA NATIONAL GUARD PLACED ON STANDBY TO SUPPORT LAW ENFORCEMENT AS PROTESTS TURN VIOLENT

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt pinned blame on Democrats and their rhetoric for heightened threats against federal immigration law enforcement officers. 

“The Democrat Party has demeaned these individuals,” Leavitt said Thursday of federal immigration officers. “They’ve even referred to them as ‘Nazis’ and as ‘the Gestapo.’ And that is absolutely leading to the violence we’re seeing in the streets.

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“If you look at some of the images out of Minneapolis last night, look at this vehicle, look at what it says,” Leavitt added. “It says, ‘F ICE.’ You have these individuals who are putting their middle finger, proudly so, at the camera, another ICE individual, a vehicle that was vandalized last night by these left-wing agitators.”

White House-backed GOP bill would revoke citizenship after Somali fraud scandal

FIRST ON FOX: A Senate Republican wants to dramatically expand the federal government’s ability to denaturalize a citizen with legislation built to withstand challenges in court.

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., introduced his Stop Citizenship Abuse and Misrepresentation (SCAM) Act to develop a series of wide-ranging legal triggers for the denaturalization process in the wake of the Minnesota fraud scandal.

Schmitt’s legislation is designed to bolster the government’s ability to strip a naturalized person of their citizenship, but it does not stop at targeting just fraudsters.

FEDERAL OFFICIALS TO HALT MORE THAN $10B IN FUNDING TO 5 STATES OVER NON-CITIZEN BENEFIT CONCERNS: REPORT

The SCAM Act creates a 10-year window, post-naturalization that, if a person were to hit a series of triggers, would lower the threshold for the federal government to strike their citizenship and begin the deportation process.

Among the acts that would fall under the scope of Schmitt’s legislation are whether a person defrauded a federal, state, local or tribal government of $10,000 or more, committed espionage, committed an aggravated felony, or is affiliated with a foreign terrorist organization.

The lawmaker argued that people who trigger those requisites “must be denaturalized because they have proven they never met the requirements for the great honor of American citizenship in the first place.”

SENATE REPUBLICANS EYE RECONCILIATION TO ADDRESS MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL

“The rampant fraud uncovered in Minnesota must be a wakeup call,” Schmitt said. “People who commit felony fraud, serious felonies, or join terrorist organizations like drug cartels shortly after taking their citizenship oaths fail to uphold the basic standards of citizenship.”

Schmitt’s legislation specifically targets the “good moral character” factor in the naturalization process, which requires a person to engage in moral and ethical conduct for up to five years before applying for citizenship.

The bill would automatically and retroactively undermine that key step in the naturalization process and contends that the aforementioned acts committed post-naturalization act as proof that a person never qualified for citizenship in the first place.

HOUSE GOP WHIP URGES CITIZENSHIP REVOCATIONS TIED TO MINNESOTA FRAUD SCHEMES

It also has a built-in mechanism to deal with challenges to the legislation in court, specifically to automatically switch out the 10-year window — if found unconstitutional — with a five-year window.

His legislation also has the backing of the White House and was lauded by Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff for policy and President Donald Trump’s Homeland Security advisor.

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Prosecutors digging into the sprawling Minnesota fraud scandal estimate upward of $9 billion in stolen funds and have charged several native-Somali residents in connection with the boondoggle.

“The Somali fraud scandal is one of the greatest financial scandals in American history,” Miller said. “All Somali refugees, or any other immigrants, who have committed fraud against the United States must be immediately denaturalized and deported.”

Trump asserts Ilhan Omar should be jailed or booted to Somalia

President Donald Trump asserted in a Sunday night Truth Social post that Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota should either be locked up in jail or sent to Somalia.

“There is 19 Billion Dollars in Minnesota Somalia Fraud. Fake ‘Congresswoman’ Illhan Omar, a constant complainer who hates the USA, knows everything there is to know. She should be in jail, or even a worse punishment, sent back to Somalia, considered one of the absolutely worst countries in the World. She could help to MAKE SOMALIA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump declared in the post.

Omar, who has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since early 2019, was born in Somalia and became a U.S. citizen in 2000.

“ICE is removing some of the most violent criminals in the World from our Country, and bring them back home, where they belong. Why is Minnesota fighting this? Do they really want murderers and drug dealers to be ensconced in their community? The thugs that are protesting include many highly paid professional agitators and anarchists. Is this really what Minnesota wants?” the president asked in a Sunday Truth Social post.

TRUMP ACCUSES TIM WALZ AND ILHAN OMAR OF USING ICE PROTESTS TO DISTRACT FROM MASSIVE STATE FRAUD

“The crooked Governor and ‘Congresswoman’ Omar, who married her brother, don’t mind because it keeps the focus of attention off the 18 Billion Dollar, Plus, FRAUD, that has taken place in the State! Don’t worry, we’re on it!” he added in the post.

ILHAN OMAR LASHES OUT AT ‘SICK’ REPUBLICANS FOR INVESTIGATING HER ALLEGED MARRIAGE TO BROTHER

Omar recently drew criticism for referring to the nation as the “U.S. God—- States.”

“No member of Congress should *ever* refer to our country as the ‘U.S. G—— States,’” GOP Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah wrote in a post on X, asking, “What should be the consequence of saying that?”

ILHAN OMAR REFERS TO ‘US GOD—- STATES’ DURING IMPASSIONED REMARKS ABOUT ICE

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Business tycoon Elon Musk replied, “Whatever the penalty is for treason.” 

Fox News Digital reached out to Omar’s office on Monday to request comment on the Truth Social post.

DAVID MARCUS: Sorry Omar Fateh, we’re not doing Somali-run no-go zones in Minnesota

In a chilling series of social media posts on Saturday night, Minnesota state senator and former Minneapolis mayoral candidate Omar Fateh pledged to make the Cedar Riverside neighborhood of his city a “no-go zone for white supremacists.”

“No-go zone” is a term popularized in Europe that refers to Muslim-majority neighborhoods where it is not safe for White people to go.

The X posts began with Fateh and two other men standing before the iconic Cedar Riverside towers with the message, “Cedar Strong. White Supremacists aren’t welcome here. We protect our own.”

A bit shocked by the sentiment, I quote-posted the senator to remind him Americans can enter any neighborhood they want to, writing, “You don’t decide who is and isn’t welcome anywhere. We don’t allow ‘no-go zones.’”

FEDERAL JUDGE RESTRICTS ICE AGENTS AMID ONGOING MINNEAPOLIS AREA PROTESTS

To this, Fateh doubled down, responding, “This is a No-Go zone for white supremacists,” adding an angry emoji for emphasis.

The first and obvious question here is, what does Fateh mean by “white supremacist.” But before we get to that, let’s be clear, if somebody wants to don full Nazi regalia and walk up and down the sidewalk in Little Mogadishu, Minnesota, while doing the John Cleese funny Hitler walk, they can.

This is a free country and one of our most cherished freedoms is expression. It is long established not just legally, but socially in America, that as abhorrent as Nazis are, they still have rights.

DHS ARRESTS ARMED MAN WITH EXTRA AMMUNITION FOR ASSAULTING FEDERAL OFFICER AT LATE-NIGHT MINNEAPOLIS RIOT

But let’s not be naive. Omar Fateh is not talking about the Ku Klux Klan or even the Proud Boys here. He is almost certainly talking about anyone who supports President Donald Trump and the operations of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the Twin Cities.

Fateh and his Democratic colleagues in Minnesota, such as Gov. Tim Walz, Mayor Jacob Frey and Rep. Ilhan Omar, have painted the fully legal ICE actions in the Land of 10,000 Lakes as racism, again and again and again.

Many of these same so-called leaders have hurled accusations of racism against journalists like Nick Shirley, who have exposed a largely Somali fraud scandal that federal prosecutors say took more than $9 billion away from needy children and senior citizens. One can perhaps understand why Fateh would want a No-Nick-Shirley-Zone to protect the corrupt among his constituents.

JOURNALIST SAYS IT’S ‘TERRIFYING’ TO BE A CONSERVATIVE IN MINNEAPOLIS AFTER ANTI-ICE PROTESTERS SWARMED CAR

On Saturday afternoon in Minneapolis, pro-Trump counter protesters were physically assaulted as they tried to make their voices heard. One man was threatened with violence if he didn’t take off his American flag sweatshirt, in frigid temperatures.

In America.

This is abject madness, bordering on total chaos, and what is Fateh’s response? To pour fuel on the fire by promising similar treatment to any pro-ICE person who dares enter his Somali-run no-go zone.

TRUMP ACCUSES TIM WALZ AND ILHAN OMAR OF USING ICE PROTESTS TO DISTRACT FROM MASSIVE STATE FRAUD

Does anyone doubt for even half a second that a MAGA hat, or at this point, even an American flag itself, would be considered “White supremacy” by Fateh and his ilk?

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What percentage of Americans do Fateh and his buddies think are White supremacists? Millions? And if so, by what authority have they simply decided those people aren’t allowed in this neighborhood? 

Who is going to enforce this no-go zone? Will it have its own militia? A small Somali standing army in the Midwest? This is craziness.

MAN ALLEGEDLY ASSAULTED WITH FLAGPOLE BY MINNEAPOLIS ANTI-ICE AGITATORS IN VIOLENT PARKING GARAGE ATTACK

Everybody, but especially Democrats, need to be crystal clear in saying to Fateh that European-style no-go zones will not be tolerated in America. We long ago did away with shameful “sunset towns” where Black people could not venture after dark. We will not allow Fateh to bring that horrid practice back.

This is just further evidence that leadership of the Somali community in Minnesota has no interest in assimilation. They want a semi-autonomous area that they control. Not only is that not how America works, it also harms the futures of those they represent.

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Fateh and Omar would have their constituents believe that the broader rules of America, including our democratically enacted immigration laws, simply do not apply to them. It’s a recipe for disaster.

Americans are not going to be told that there are neighborhoods in their own nation which they may not enter. That might fly in Cologne or Copenhagen, but not in the United States. Omar Fateh needs to figure this out before he gets more people hurt or killed.

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Trump admin preparing 1,500 soldiers for potential Minnesota deployment

President Donald Trump‘s administration is preparing 1,500 troops for potential deployment to Minnesota, a senior U.S. official confirmed to Fox News.

The official says the U.S. Army’s 11th Airborne Division, which is based in Alaska and specializes in cold-weather and mountain warfare, has given prepare to deploy orders. The Washington Post was first to report the Pentagon’s readiness.

“The Department of War is always prepared to execute the orders of the Commander-in-Chief if called upon.,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement to Fox News.

Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy U.S. military forces to Minnesota if state officials do not start cracking down on anti-ICE agitators.

MIKE DAVIS: WHAT IS HAPPENING IN MINNESOTA IS WHY WE HAVE THE INSURRECTION ACT

“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

Minneapolis and St. Paul are already hosting some 3,000 federal agents deployed there after a massive fraud scandal rocked the state late last year.

Protesters across the Twin Cities have followed and harassed federal agents as they carry out operations, leading to confrontations and the killing of activist Renee Nicole Good by federal agents in the opening days of January.

MINNESOTA DEPT OF CORRECTIONS DISMISSES DHS NARRATIVE ABOUT THEM NOT COMPLYING WITH ICE

Trump toned down the pressure in a statement on Friday, saying he did not see at that point a reason to invoke the Insurrection Act.

“I believe it was Bush, the elder Bush, he used it, I think 28 times,” Trump told reporters while departing the White House. “It’s been used a lot. And if I needed it, I’d use it. I don’t think there’s any reason right now to use it, but if I needed it, I’d use it. It’s very powerful.”

The readiness order for the 11th Airborne Division was given prior to the Friday statement.

The Insurrection Act reportedly has not been invoked since the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which began after four police officers were acquitted in the beating of Rodney King.

Despite Trump’s threat, some Republicans are resistant to the idea of using the centuries-old law. 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., seemed to downplay Trump’s threat, placing his hope in local law enforcement’s ability to “settle things down.”

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“Hopefully the local officials working with not only the federal law enforcement, ICE and other agencies, but also the local law enforcement officials, will be able to settle things down,” Thune told reporters.

Trump accuses Tim Walz and Ilhan Omar of using ICE protests to distract from massive state fraud

President Donald Trump lashed out at Minnesota Democrats on social media Sunday, saying they were using the ongoing federal operations to distract from the state’s massive fraud issue.

Trump made the statement on his Truth Social media platform, saying federal agents in Minneapolis and St. Paul were targeting “violent criminals.”

“ICE is removing some of the most violent criminals in the World from our Country, and bring them back home, where they belong. Why is Minnesota fighting this? Do they really want murderers and drug dealers to be ensconced in their community? The thugs that are protesting include many highly paid professional agitators and anarchists. Is this really what Minnesota wants?” Trump wrote.

Trump went on to call out Gov. Tim Walz and Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., saying they “don’t mind because it keeps the focus of attention off the 18 Billion Dollar, Plus, FRAUD, that has taken place in the State!” 

“Don’t worry, we’re on it!” Trump added.

MINNESOTA NATIONAL GUARD PLACED ON STANDBY TO SUPPORT LAW ENFORCEMENT AS PROTESTS TURN VIOLENT

Federal agents have faced harassment and protests from agitators in Minnesota in recent weeks. Federal prosecutors are investigating both Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for allegedly impeding law enforcement efforts in the blue state.

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche told Fox News the duo’s anti-ICE rhetoric was teetering on a federal crime.

“When the governor or the mayor threaten our officers, when the mayor suggests that he’s encouraging citizens to call 911 when they see ICE officers, that is very close to a federal crime,” Blanche said.

MINNESOTA DEPT OF CORRECTIONS DISMISSES DHS NARRATIVE ABOUT THEM NOT COMPLYING WITH ICE

Bondi added on X, “A reminder to all those in Minnesota: No one is above the law.”

Walz responded to the news on Friday by accusing the Trump administration of “weaponizing the justice system.”

“Two days ago, it was Elissa Slotkin. Last week it was Jerome Powell. Before that, Mark Kelly,” Walz wrote in an X post. “Weaponizing the justice system against your opponents is an authoritarian tactic. The only person not being investigated for the shooting of Renee Good is the federal agent who shot her.”

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Frey also weighed in on social media, asserting he “will not be intimidated.”

“This is an obvious attempt to intimidate me for standing up for Minneapolis, local law enforcement, and residents against the chaos and danger this Administration has brought to our city,” Frey wrote on X. “I will not be intimidated. My focus remains where it’s always been: keeping our city safe.

Emmer to introduce new bill to strip citizenship from fraudsters and terrorists: ‘You’re going home’

FIRST ON FOX: A bill set to be put before lawmakers would strip naturalized Americans convicted of fraud and other offenses of their citizenship amid a widening scandal concerning fraudulent activity in Minnesota. 

The “Stop Citizenship Abuse and Misrepresentation Act,” or the SCAM Act, slated to be introduced by House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., would clarify what evidence the federal government can use when proving an individual did not meet the lawful requirements at the time of their naturalization.

The legislation would create a path to denaturalize anyone who, within 10 years of their naturalization, is convicted of fraud against the government, found to have joined, or affiliated with a foreign terrorist organization, or is convicted of an aggravated felony. 

SENATE REPUBLICANS PUSH TO DEPORT, DENATURALIZE FRAUDSTERS AMID MINNESOTA SCANDAL

“If you came to this country to harm and take advantage of the American people, I’ve got news for you: You’re going home,” Emmer told Fox News. “Anyone who commits fraud against American taxpayers, affiliates with a terrorist organization, or commits an aggravated felony after becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen never met the requirements for naturalization in the first place and should be denaturalized and deported.”

“It’s common sense and the SCAM Act will make it law,” he added. “This legislation not only holds Somali fraudsters in Minnesota accountable, but it restores long-overdue integrity to America’s entire naturalization process. It’s time to send them home.”

The bill comes amid heavy scrutiny in Minnesota over a massive fraud scandal that has engulfed Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis’ Somali community. 

In 2022, federal officials in Minnesota launched an independent investigation into Feeding Our Future, a nonprofit that prosecutors later described as a key driver of what grew into one of the largest COVID-relief fraud schemes, with an estimated $250 million in fraudulent claims, leading to criminal charges against 78 people. 

GOP SENATOR PUSHES TO CREATE ANTI-FRAUD SPECIAL INSPECTOR GENERAL AFTER MINNESOTA FRAUD REVELATIONS

The fraud was revealed by federal prosecutors last year, putting the state in the national spotlight. 

In addition, Nick Shirley, a YouTuber and freelance journalist, went viral with a video uncovering alleged fraud involving daycare centers in the Somali community in Minneapolis. 

He is scheduled to testify on Jan. 21 before the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance, which is holding a hearing on various Minnesota fraud scandals. 

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, introduced a bill that would amend the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act to impose harsher penalties on childcare providers convicted of fraud, and one of several moves in the upper chamber to tackle the sprawling Minnesota fraud scandal.

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The effort is one of many coming from the Senate, where GOP lawmakers are looking at several options to crack down on fraud, both in Minnesota and more broadly in the federal government.

MIKE DAVIS: What is happening in Minnesota is why we have the Insurrection Act

Minnesota reeks of corruption and incompetence. Gov. Tim Walz presided over a fraud catastrophe that prosecutors say could top $9 billion, authorized tampons in boys’ bathrooms and bungled virtually every aspect of governance. Now, he outdoes himself by claiming Minnesota stands “at war” with the federal government and portraying federal law enforcement as an occupying force. Radical leftists riot once again in Minneapolis’ streets, assault ICE officers, and openly flout the law. Enough is enough. President Trump must invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807 and restore order.

Sanctuary states and cities cripple federal law enforcement. Leftist leaders refuse to assist the federal government in enforcing immigration law, including the outrageous refusal to honor federal detainers for illegal immigrants arrested for other crimes. When state jails release illegal immigrants, officials fail to notify ICE. Agents must track fugitives on the streets instead of making safe arrests inside jails, exposing themselves and the public to unnecessary danger. Sanctuary policies shield murderers, pedophiles, drug dealers, and armed robbers from deportation.

The latest outrage surrounds the fatal shooting of Renee Good, a radical anti-ICE agitator who called herself a “legal observer.” That label grants no immunity. Good blocked roads and boxed in ICE vehicles, which is illegal obstruction. When an ICE Agent ordered Good out of her SUV, she drove off and struck another agent, who sustained internal injuries and fired at Good to protect his life and the lives of others. An SUV weighing thousands of pounds obviously constitutes a deadly weapon. A mother behind the wheel can inflict the same harm as any large man with a firearm.

Leftists maliciously call the ICE agent a murderer. They lie. Only Good’s partner, Becca, could face felony-murder criminal liability if a jury finds Renee’s death resulted from Becca’s felonious misconduct. Becca urged her to “Drive, baby, drive!” A jury could find she conspired to obstruct ICE, instigating the attack that forced her partner’s lethal restraint. Becca must face the full weight of the law.

DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST CITY COUNCIL MEMBER CALLS OUT FREY, WALZ FOR NOT DOING ENOUGH TO STOP ICE ‘OCCUPATION’

Renee Good’s death unleashed predictable leftist chaos. Walz, ever the agitator, mused about using the Minnesota National Guard against the federal government and repeatedly described the state as “at war” with the U.S. government. Anti-ICE radicals looted federal vehicles, stole sensitive documents, and doxxed ICE agents online. They terrorize law enforcement with impunity–and Walz’ complicity.

Minnesota openly defies the Supremacy Clause, which makes federal law supreme. Immigration enforcement remains an exclusive federal responsibility, yet blue states filed absurd and frivolous Tenth Amendment lawsuits seeking to expel ICE. No court precedent supports their claim. If their theory held, segregationist states during Jim Crow could have barred federal civil-rights enforcement. Red states cooperate fully with ICE, while Minnesota wallows in chaos.

Minnesota’s lawlessness has gone unchecked. Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and other leftist officials refuse to act and even encourage left-wing law breaking. Police watch rioters loot an ICE vehicle and attack federal officers without intervention.

SECRETARY NOEM SAYS GOV WALZ REJECTED DHS HELP AS PROTESTS GRIP MINNEAPOLIS

Because Walz and Frey caused open-season on federal immigration officials doing their jobs by enforcing federal immigration laws, Trump can and should federalize the Minnesota National Guard and deploy active-duty military members under the Insurrection Act. Indeed, this is textbook insurrection. History provides precedent. In 1992, President George H.W. Bush invoked the Insurrection Act to quell riots in Los Angeles following the Rodney King verdict. Minnesota faces at least an equally dire threat, as radical thugs target federal officers enforcing federal laws. If Walz and Frey have their way, their Somali warlord, pirate, and fraudster political allies will replicate Black Hawk Down in Minneapolis instead of Mogadishu.

Trump previously deployed the National Guard to restore order in Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, Ore.. Despite the immediate drop in crime and the resulting lives saved, the Supreme Court blinked, misinterpreted the law, and limited the president’s authority under ordinary statutes. Justice Kavanaugh noted that the Supreme Court did not address the Insurrection Act. ICE agents now face imminent danger. Trump cannot reduce enforcement. Doing so would surrender to domestic terrorists. He must wield the Insurrection Act decisively. Lawsuits will follow, but the rule of law demands immediate action.

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Invocation alone cannot stop this threat. Federal prosecutors must hold these Minnesota insurrectionists accountable. Walz, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and Hennepin County Soros prosecutor Mary Moriarty refuse to enforce the law. Federal grand juries must indict them for insurrection, seditious conspiracy, harboring illegal aliens, assault on federal officers, obstruction of justice, conspiracy, and many other serious federal felonies. Walz must face investigation for the Somali daycare fraud scandal, which allegedly amounted to at least $9 billion of taxpayer funds allegedly funneled to Somali warlords and other terrorists while state whistleblowers faced threats. This pattern of lawlessness has persisted for decades.

Minnesota’s leaders habitually defy the law, undermine federal authority, and endanger citizens. Trump, as the commander-in-chief and chief executive officer, holds both the constitutional and statutory authority to act. He should invoke the Insurrection Act, federalize the Minnesota National Guard, deploy active-duty military forces, and prosecute these Minnesota insurrectionists. These actions fulfill the government’s primary duty, which is to preserve order, uphold the law, and protect American lives.

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Minnesota’s welfare fraud disaster exposes a national system designed to fail

The welfare fraud in Minnesota seems to be a never-ending story. We’re learning that scammers bilked multiple programs intended to help low-income families, including Medicaid, food aid, housing assistance and childcare programs. Based on what’s been uncovered so far, the people who perpetrated those schemes may have stolen upwards of $9 billion. 

Yet, while Minnesota’s welfare fraud is particularly brazen and systemic, it is not unique to that state. That is because the basic design of most U.S. welfare programs makes them highly susceptible to fraud. 

For example, for years, Medicaid has been on the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) list of federal programs at “high-risk” for fraud, waste and abuse. GAO finds the program has insufficient federal oversight. In 2024, it estimates, there were more than $31 billion in erroneous Medicaid payments. 

That is particularly concerning because Medicaid is the largest means-tested government welfare program, costing federal and state taxpayers around $900 billion annually. Unsurprisingly, Medicaid was also the source of most of the money stolen in Minnesota.

MINNESOTA HOUSE SPEAKER WARNS AMERICANS WILL BE ‘SHOCKED’ BY SCOPE OF FRAUD CRISIS

In short, the Minnesota scandals are the bitter fruit of deeply rooted problems in a system badly in need of reform. 

The biggest design flaw is that most of the funding for welfare programs come from the federal coffers, but the federal government has largely delegated to states responsibility for administering and policing those programs. Yet, federal oversight of fraud prevention in welfare programs is often lacking, and because states are spending mostly federal dollars, they lack strong incentives to ensure funds are spent properly. 

Case in point: the federal Child Care and Development Fund — which financed Minnesota’s now-infamous “Quality Learing Center” — has also received scrutiny for poor federal oversight. A 2016 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Inspector General’s report on that program explained that states are required to submit fraud protection plans to HHS.

MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR JACOB FREY ADMITS FRAUD CRISIS IS REAL, SAYS ‘EVERYBODY COULD HAVE DONE MORE’ TO PREVENT IT

Those plans include things like reviewing attendance records at childcare centers, conducting staff reviews and performing on-site visits. But the report noted that HHS had not established a process to ensure that states carry out their fraud protection plans. Obviously, a plan that isn’t implemented is useless. 

Another major problem is that funding for most welfare programs is calculated and allocated not according to performance measures, but on the number of people served. That gives service providers an incentive to “pad the rolls,” and it also disincentivizes state government officials from monitoring those providers too closely, since tighter controls could reduce the flow of federal funds to the state. 

That leads to yet another, related flaw in the current system. Many welfare programs provide grant funding to third parties to deliver services. The intended beneficiaries of those services have no say in how the funds are spent. That makes those programs vulnerable to large-scale abuse, like occurred in Minnesota.

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A third-party service provider — either for-profit or nonprofit — can pull in a lot of government dollars by artificially inflating participant rolls or by claiming to provide services they haven’t truly provided. 

In short, the Minnesota scandals are the bitter fruit of deeply rooted problems in a system badly in need of reform. 

In contrast, programs that deal directly with the intended recipients and give them a say in how funds are spent — such as through account- or voucher-type mechanisms — are less prone to massive fraud schemes. For instance, a family given a voucher or account to pay for childcare has a natural incentive to get value for the money.

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The silver lining of the recent crisis is that it has brought attention to fraud in the welfare system. Now is an opportunity to tackle this problem. Agencies should increase federal oversight of states to ensure that fraud prevention occurs. Congress should also reform welfare programs so that states are required to provide a greater portion of welfare funding, giving states more incentive to see programs are protected against abuse. 

Policymakers and the public are outraged by what happened in Minnesota. Unfortunately, we’re likely to see more of it unless policymakers address the deeper flaws of the welfare system. 

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EXCLUSIVE: HUD launches civil rights probe into Minneapolis over race-based housing priorities

EXCLUSIVE: The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) opened an investigation into the city of Minneapolis Thursday, alleging the city’s housing policies illegally prioritize resources based on race and national origin, Fox News Digital has learned. 

“Minnesota has been ground zero for fraud and corruption because it plays a cynical game of racial and ethnic politics,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner told Fox News Digital. “This goes against our values as Americans, united by a common heritage, language and commitment to equal treatment under law.” 

Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Craig Trainor sent a letter to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey Thursday evening informing him that HUD had launched a probe into whether Minneapolis violated the Fair Housing Act and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act through its housing plans, programs and internal equity directives.

The Fair Housing Act is a federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability or familial status. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination based on race or national origin in any program or activity that receives federal funding.

SEC SCOTT BESSENT: HOW TO STOP FRAUD IN MINNESOTA AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY 

Minnesota has become the focal point of government fraud as details emerged regarding an alleged sweeping COVID-era scheme involving money laundering tied to multiple social-services programs. Nearly 100 people, most of whom are from Minnesota’s Somali community, have been charged, while federal prosecutors estimated that the total amount of fraud across various state-administered social services programs could reach more than $9 billion.

Considering the alleged fraud involved taxpayer dollars, HUD officials said evidence suggests that racial politics also extended to Minneapolis’s housing policy. 

The letter argues that Minneapolis has “committed to making available and allocating housing resources based on race and nationality,” raising potential federal civil rights violations. 

HUD specifically cited language in the city’s “Minneapolis 2040” comprehensive plan, as well as the city’s Strategic and Racial Equity Action Plan, as cause for concern. 

Minneapolis 2040, adopted in 2020 under Frey, is the city’s comprehensive plan outlining the economic, infrastructure and environmental vision of the city across the next decade and a half. It includes a section focused on establishing “cultural districts,” which are described as “contiguous area with a rich sense of cultural and/or linguistic identity rooted in communities significantly populated by people of color, Indigenous people, and/or immigrants.”

“This plan strives to eliminate disparities among people of color and indigenous peoples compared with white people,” Minneapolis 2040 states.

MINNESOTA HEALTH CARE OWNER CHARGED WITH YEARS-LONG MEDICAID SCAM TOPPING $3M

The letter also cited Minneapolis’ Strategic and Racial Equity Action guide, which instructs city departments to align racial equity goals with their plans, programs and budgets. 

“Minneapolis’s current Strategic and Racial Equity Action Plan claims to tangibly align ‘racial equity goals with department plans and budgets,'” the letter states. “For example, your Community Planning and Economic Development department will prioritize ‘rental housing for Black, Indigenous, People of Color and Immigrant communities’ by ‘leveraging (its) rental licensing authority.’”

“That is not going to fly,” Trainor wrote in his letter to Frey. 

Turner told Fox News Digital he “will continue to deliver on President Trump’s promise to support affordable housing for American families, in part by dismantling illegal racial and ethnic preferences that deny Americans their right to equal protection under the law.” 

“I am committed to delivering on this promise by thoroughly investigating any housing discrimination involving the City of Minneapolis,” he said. 

Fox News Digital reached out to Frey’s office and the city of Minneapolis’ communications team Thursday evening for comment on the letter but did not immediately receive a reply. 

Fallout from Minnesota’s alleged fraud scandal spilled into the governor’s race in January, when Democratic Gov. Tim Walz ended his re-election bid. 

Walz, who has served as governor since 2019, said the wrongdoing unfolded on his watch. He took responsibility for oversight failures, while arguing Republicans had “sensationalized” the multibillion-dollar figures.

Frey said earlier in January that “obviously, everybody could have done more to prevent” fraud, but that “you do not hold an entire community, any community, accountable for the actions of individuals,” referring to the Somali community. 

Minneapolis has been roiled by protests and agitators clashing with federal law enforcement deployed to the state amid the fraud investigations. The chaos heightened after the fatal shooting of a woman by an ICE agent in early January after she allegedly attempted to use her vehicle as a weapon against a federal officer. 

YOUTUBER TO TESTIFY BEFORE CONGRESS ON MINNESOTA’S MASSIVE $9B FRAUD NETWORK INVESTIGATION

Turner joined Fox News at the start of the new year and said HUD officials were on the ground in Minnesota investigating funds delivered to public housing authorities. 

“We have investigators that are making sure that any HUD-funded programs in Minnesota are being carried out appropriately,” he said. “Also, we just launched an investigation and housing authorities, public housing authorities there in Minnesota. They receive about $108 million in Minneapolis and also about $46 million in public housing assistance there. So, we want to make sure that we’re being good stewards of taxpayer money.”

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Turner reported on X Monday that his department uncovered “up to $84 million in ineligible assistance during Biden’s final year, including $496,000 in improper assistance to 509 dead tenants.”

FBI arrests suspect after federal courthouse in Minneapolis windows smashed

FIRST ON FOX: Federal authorities this week arrested a man accused of breaking a window of a federal courthouse in Minneapolis.

The FBI identified the suspect as Georgio James-Jones, saying he had attempted to breach the courthouse during a protest on Jan. 7. 

FBI Director Kash Patel highlighted James-Jones’ arrest in a statement to Fox News Digital.

“This week, the FBI and partners arrested Georgio James-Jones – the individual who allegedly smashed windows attempting to breach a federal courthouse in Minneapolis last week. As the FBI has said repeatedly – if you attack law enforcement, impede their operations, or engage in violent, destructive behavior, this FBI will find you and bring you to justice,” Patel said.

James-Jones was one of dozens of anti-ICE rioters who were seen banging on the doors of the Diana E. Murphy in Minneapolis.

MINNESOTA ANTI-ICE AGITATORS SWARM, CONFRONT FEDERAL AGENTS DURING ENFORCEMENT OPERATIONS

The protest was part of a nationwide streak of unrest in the wake of the death of Renee Nicole Good, who was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis last week.

Another protest in California on Tuesday saw agitators burning an American flag and shouting expletives through a megaphone.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said two officers were injured in a clash with the protesters. One of the demonstrators was also struck in the eye with a crowd-control munition, leaving the eye blind, according to his family.

The Justice Department has surged federal officers and prosecutors to Minneapolis this week, focusing primarily on fraud and immigration cases.

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City officials said residents have raised concerns about neighborhood access, with multiple 311 calls requesting barrier removal. While memorials created by community members will remain intact, the city said surrounding streets must stay clear to ensure emergency access.

SEC SCOTT BESSENT: How to stop fraud in Minnesota—and across the country

Over the last several years, criminals have exploited the culture of “Minnesota nice” to steal billions of dollars in taxpayer funds in one of the most egregious frauds in our nation’s history. Under Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, these fraudsters—many of whom are not even American citizens—lined their pockets with money that was initially intended to feed hungry children, house disabled seniors, and provide services for young students with special needs.

Last week, I traveled with my team to Minneapolis to meet in person with the investigators, prosecutors, legislators, and community members on the front lines of combating this crime. Their frustration was palpable. There, we learned more about a transnational money laundering scheme that festered under President Joe Biden and the state’s political leadership. The scandal was unprecedented in its scope and scale. But so is President Trump’s plan to fix it by attacking fraud at the source—both in Minnesota and across the country.

At the president’s direction, the Treasury Department is examining the transfer of funds allegedly sent from the affected parts of Minnesota to other countries, including Somalia. These funds are often sent through money services businesses, which provide financial services outside the banking system. This money could have potentially been diverted to terrorist organizations, such as Al-Shabaab. Treasury has a long history of following the money to financially suffocate bad actors, like the mafia and Mexican drug cartels. Now we are doing the same to shut down Somali fraud rings.

TREASURY SECRETARY BESSENT VOWS TO LEAVE ‘NO STONE UNTURNED’ IN MINNESOTA FRAUD PROBE

As part of this effort, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the IRS are investigating financial institutions that may have played a role in abetting rampant fraud. Specifically, we are evaluating whether these institutions have complied with their legal obligations under the Bank Secrecy Act and Treasury’s regulations, which are designed to detect money laundering and safeguard the U.S. financial system from abuse.

Treasury is also taking steps to disrupt criminal networks from within. The fraud rings in Minnesota have many tentacles. But we will expose them all by offering incentives for whistleblowers who are willing to cooperate with law enforcement and identify perpetrators.

BESSENT BLAMES WALZ AS TREASURY PROBES WHETHER MINNESOTA FRAUD FUNDS REACHED TERROR GROUP AL-SHABAB

Beyond pinpointing the source of the fraud, it is critical that we prevent more taxpayer dollars from leaving the country for improper purposes. That’s why FinCEN has issued a Geographic Targeting Order for Hennepin and Ramsey Counties in Minnesota, which will require banks and money transmitters to report additional information about funds transferred outside of the United States valued at $3,000 or more. 

Treasury has also trained Minnesota law enforcement to utilize the data they gather from these reports to prevent this scandal from happening again. This will put a microscope on fraudulent businesses, advance prosecutions and assist in the recovery of funds laundered internationally.

BESSENT SAYS MINNESOTA FRAUD RECOVERY COULD HELP FUND TRUMP’S $1.5T DEFENSE PLAN

If individuals are on welfare, they should not be in a financial position to send money overseas. And yet thousands still do. This means that American taxpayers are effectively supplementing the incomes of overseas individuals. 

This must stop. 

To assess the prevalence of this practice, Treasury’s Geographic Targeting Order requires financial institutions wiring money abroad from Hennepin and Ramsey Counties to check a box to indicate if the funds are from any federal, state, or local government benefit program.

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Sadly, Minnesota does not have a monopoly on this sort of fraud. Similar misconduct is almost certainly happening in many other states, especially states like California, New York, and Illinois, which impose lax controls on the use of government benefit funds. In fact, our own Government Accountability Office estimates that the government may lose more than $500 billion each year to fraud. This is a staggering figure larger than the GDP of most countries. It represents up to 10% of federal tax revenues each year and approximately 1% to 2% of GDP.

Eliminating this fraud entirely would do more than any other federal measure to alleviate the burden on taxpayers and reduce the deficit. That is why President Donald Trump has created a new division within the Department of Justice with the sole purpose of prosecuting fraud nationally. 

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The president wants to scale the model we have established in Minnesota to root out waste, fraud, and abuse in every corner of the country. Extraordinary crime requires an extraordinary response—and President Trump has provided that by launching the largest anti-fraud campaign of the 21st century.

Under previous administrations, criminals managed to turn government benefits into a multibillion-dollar business enterprise, systematically bilking taxpayers of their hard-earned money. But that ends now. President Trump has launched an all-of-government effort to recover stolen funds and prosecute tax thieves. He will give no quarter to fraudulent criminals—in Minnesota or anywhere else in the country.

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Minnesota’s major newspaper demands ICE end ‘occupation’ of state

Minnesota’s flagship newspaper demanded that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leave Minneapolis and the state in a new editorial out Thursday, saying the “occupation” cannot go on any longer.

“Heavily armed and masked government agents are prone to confront any American they encounter in the street but especially people of certain colors, accents or styles of dress,” the Minnesota Star Tribune editorial board wrote. “The encounters are often violent. The federal agents operating under the insignia of Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Department of Homeland Security, functioning largely anonymously, have disrupted the life of large swaths of a state.”

“The occupation of Minnesota by ICE cannot stand,” the board added.

The paper accused Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem of being misleading when she said accountability was coming for the perpetrators of the massive fraud scandal that’s put the state’s Somali community and Democratic leadership under scrutiny.

ANTI-ICE THREAT SPRAY-PAINTED ON VEHICLE BELIEVED TO BE USED BY FEDERAL OFFICERS DURING MINNEAPOLIS UNREST

“Fraud investigation and immigration enforcement in Minnesota have become a pretext for a sweeping federal show of force that bears little relationship to the problem it claims to address. It is indiscriminate. Noncitizen immigrants without legal status make up roughly 1.5% of Minnesota’s population — less than half the national average. Nothing about that figure justifies the scale, posture or tactics now widely deployed,” the Star Tribune wrote.

Tensions are high in Minneapolis, particularly since the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent last week in what the administration has said was an act of self-defense. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey called for ICE to “get the f— out” of the city in response.

Agitators and federal law enforcement clashed in Minneapolis on Wednesday night into Thursday morning after a second ICE-involved shooting in the city, as local officials also continue to demand the agency leave.

DHS DEMANDS MN LEADERS HONOR ICE DETAINERS, ALLEGES HUNDREDS OF CRIMINAL ALIENS HAVE BEEN RELEASED UNDER WALZ

An ICE agent shot an alleged illegal immigrant in the leg on Wednesday during an arrest attempt. The Department of Homeland Security claims the agent fired at the suspect because he was “fearing for his life and safety” after the individual resisted arrest and “violently assaulted the officer.”

The newspaper said immigration enforcement shouldn’t end but claimed ICE’s mission had become a “a form of militant policing designed to intimidate rather than enforce, to provoke rather than stabilize.” It also suggested it was a matter of time before Minnesotans, who they praised for being restrained in their interactions with ICE, had a “breach” of discipline in the face of “willful provocation.”

“If battalions of militarized federal agents can occupy American cities under the pretext of combating fraud, arresting undocumented felons and targeting any American seemingly at will without transparency or accountability, then no state is immune,” the board wrote. “It is currently happening in Minnesota. It’s wrong, and it must be stopped.”

ICE AGENT STRUCK BY RENEE GOOD’S VEHICLE SUFFERED INTERNAL BLEEDING TO TORSO, DHS SAYS

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Fox News Digital reached out to ICE and DHS for comment.

Minnesota health care owner charged with yearslong Medicaid scam topping $3M

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Wednesday charged a Minneapolis man with more than $3 million in Medicaid fraud tied to a state-licensed home health agency.

Mohamed Abdirashid Omarxeyd was charged with eight counts of felony theft by false representation after prosecutors said he used his company, Guardian Home Health Services, to bill Minnesota’s Medicaid program for services that were never provided or were ineligible for reimbursement from 2020 through 2024.

According to the criminal complaint, Guardian submitted fraudulent claims for personal care aide services, companion care, homemaking, respite care, individualized home support and other community support services. State officials have designated many of these services as “high-risk” for fraud.

Prosecutors allege Omarxeyd and his wife siphoned more than $2 million from the company’s accounts during the scheme.

BESSENT BLAMES WALZ AS TREASURY PROBES WHETHER MINNESOTA FRAUD FUNDS REACHED TERROR GROUP AL-SHABAB

“Defrauding programs that provide healthcare to low-income Minnesotans is a truly despicable act,” Ellison said in a statement, noting his office has prosecuted more than 300 Medicaid fraud cases and recovered over $80 million in restitution and penalties.

TOP FEDERAL PROSECUTOR WHO EXPOSED MASSIVE $250M MINNESOTA FRAUD CASE STEPS DOWN FROM POSITION

The charges come amid a wide-ranging investigation that has targeted fraud across multiple Medicaid-funded programs. Other fraud allegations involve housing stabilization services and autism intervention programs.

Prosecutors previously uncovered the massive $250 million Feeding Our Future food fraud case tied to the state’s Somali community.

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That fraud case has resulted in dozens of indictments and convictions, as well as shining a spotlight on fraud concerns in Minnesota. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz chose not to run for a third term amid the widening scandal.

No attorney is currently listed for Omarxeyd, whose first court appearance is Feb. 3.

Obama wingman Eric Holder defended Walz’s vetting — then Minnesota’s fraud scandal erupted

Former Democratic Attorney General Eric Holder, who served during former President Barack Obama’s tenure, played a key role in vouching for Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as the Democratic Party’s 2024 pick for vice president before a massive fraud scandal rocked the Gopher State. 

“There’s nothing that of any substance that was missed by our vetting team,” Holder told CNN in an October 2024 interview as the federal election came down to its final days. 

Walz is in the midst of facing a sweeping fraud scandal involving alleged money laundering operations related to alleged fraudulent meal and housing programs, daycare centers and Medicaid services that prosecutors say could total as much as $9 billion, Fox News Digital has reported. Dozens of individuals have been charged amid the investigations, most of whom are from the state’s Somali community. 

The scandal led to Walz dropping his re-election bid to serve a third term as Minnesota governor. 

VANCE CALLS WALZ ‘A JOKE,’ CLAIMS MINNESOTA GOVERNOR ENABLED MASSIVE FRAUD

Walz has said he is “accountable for” the scandal as the state’s top elected official, but has accused Republicans and the Trump administration of sensationalizing multibillion-dollar figures of alleged fraud. 

Walz bucked calls to step down as governor, declaring during a press conference Tuesday: “Over my dead body will that happen.”

More than a year ago, Walz’s run on the 2024 Democratic ticket catapulted his national name recognition after serving in politics for decades, including in the U.S. Congress from 2007 until 2019, before his election as governor. Ahead of his name being floated as a potential vice presidential contender, Walz was a relatively unknown name to everyday Americans. 

Then-Vice President Kamala Harris tapped Obama’s former attorney general to lead the vetting process of her potential running mates during the 2024 cycle. 

Holder is a longtime Obama ally and was one of the officials tasked with vetting Obama’s potential running mates back in the 2008 election cycle before landing on then-Delaware Sen. Joe Biden. 

Holder told the media in 2004 that Walz was not at the top of his list when vetting 11 candidates for Harris’ running mate, but that he moved up the list of names as Holder reviewed his “very impressive” and “significant” work in Minnesota, including signing a law in 2023 for universal free breakfast and lunch for all K-12 students in the state, KSTP reported in November 2024 ahead of the election. 

“As part of the process, the vetting process, I looked at almost every YouTube he’s ever been on,” Holder told KSTP of Walz. “Everything we could ever find about his media interactions and he’s a genuine nice guy. He’s got that Minnesota Nice thing.”

“There was a chemistry that I saw, I actually saw that happen with Kamala Harris and with Tim Walz,” Holder added at the time. “So it was a combination, I think, of accomplishments and chemistry that propelled him to the number two spot on the ticket.”

A source with knowledge of Walz’s vetting process told Fox News Digital that the fraud investigation was included in the vetting process, as details had already emerged during the governor’s 2022 re-election race. 

“Governor Walz’s Department of Education had been in contact with the FBI regarding investigations into organizations diverting funds from child nutrition programs,” the source explained. “This issue was not a factor in the 2024 presidential campaign, nor did Kamala Harris’s vice presidential choice ultimately prove to be a negative factor in the race.” 

BLAGOJEVICH TELLS WALZ IF HE DIDN’T ‘DO IT’, GO DOWN FIGHTING: ‘MAKES ME THINK HIS HANDS ARE UNCLEAN’

Walz’s emergence as the vice presidential pick quickly drew scrutiny over a string of past controversies, including allegations he exaggerated his military service, repeated misstatements about his presence during China’s Tiananmen Square massacre and questions about his handling of Minnesota’s 2020 riots — issues Republicans seized on as Democrats rushed to elevate him on the national stage. 

The 2024 election cycle was unprecedented for a multitude of reasons, most notably when then-President Biden dropped out of the race on July 21, 2024, amid mounting concerns over his health and a pair of assassination attempts on then-former President Donald Trump’s life. 

Holder joined CNN in October 2024 and defended the vetting process of Walz, calling him an “authentic guy, a person with a great record as the governor of Minnesota and who I think will be a superb vice president.”

COMER SAYS WALZ ‘RETALIATED’ AGAINST WHISTLEBLOWERS WHO WARNED OF MINNESOTA FRAUD FOR YEARS

“He has resonated with the American people,” Holder told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer at the time. “He has generated enthusiasm for the ticket. And I think that the slight exaggerations, misspeaking that he has done, and, again, for which he has, you know, taken responsibility, is not something that’s going to ultimately hurt him,” he said of Walz’s past misstatements. 

Holder was pressed if he and “your team of lawyers (missed) important information about him during the vetting process,” considering the previous misstatements. Walz, for example, claimed in 2018 he had carried “weapons in war,” but had not been deployed to an active combat zone across his 24 years in the Army National Guard. 

“No, I don’t think we did,” Holder responded about whether his team missed anything on Walz’s record. “I mean, I don’t think that we were surprised by any of the things that he has said. And as what he has indicated is that sometimes he misspoke, but he is — unlike Donald Trump, who lies like all the time. Tim Walz has made some misstatements that he has said, you know, I was wrong in saying that, apologized for making the misstatements.”

Walz has been directly implicated in the Minnesota fraud schemes, though the Trump administration has pinned some of the blame on the governor. 

“I think Tim Walz should resign,” Vice President JD Vance told the media Thursday during a White House press briefing. “Because it’s very clear either that he knew about the fraud in Minneapolis, he knew about the welfare fraud, or at the very least, he looked the other way. I mean, this is not this is not like Lex Luther, right? This is not movie villain fraud. This is the lowest IQ possible fraud.”

‘YOU DON’T GET A PROMOTION’: GOP RIVAL URGES PEGGY FLANAGAN TO QUIT SENATE RACE AFTER WALZ BOWS OUT

Amid the fraud investigations, federal law enforcement converged on Minneapolis in January. A fatal shooting broke out in a residential area Jan. 7 when a woman allegedly attempted to use her car as a weapon against immigration officers in what the Department of Homeland Security called an “act of domestic terrorism.” The woman was shot and killed, sparking fierce condemnation from Democrats and Trump critics, including some lawmakers referring to the incident as a “murder.” 

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Fox News Digital also reached out to Walz’s office and Obama’s office regarding the 2024 vetting process considering the fraud investigations, but did not immediately receive replies. 

Top federal Minnesota prosecutors officially terminated after dispute over ICE shooting probe

Several federal prosecutors in Minnesota were formally fired on Wednesday after they gave notice that they had resigned in the wake of internal disagreements over the Justice Department’s handling of a shooting investigation involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The DOJ, at the direction of Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, terminated the employment of five prosecutors in the U.S. attorney’s office in Minnesota, including Joseph Thompson, the No. 2 official there, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

Their resignations and the internal disputes about the shooting probe first surfaced in the New York Times. The prosecutors were positioned to receive paid leave for months prior to their firings on Wednesday, according to the sources.

WHY THE FBI CAN EXCLUDE STATE AUTHORITIES FROM MINNESOTA SHOOTING PROBE

Thompson was spearheading a massive, high-profile investigation into welfare fraud in the state before he submitted his resignation. His exit came after he clashed with officials in Washington, D.C., over the investigation into the ICE shooting, which left 37-year-old Renee Good dead. Fox News Digital reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota in an effort to reach Thompson for comment.

Thompson had expressed during a call with DOJ and FBI officials last week that he was on board with investigating the ICE shooting as an assault on or obstruction of a law enforcement officer, a source familiar with the call told Fox News Digital.

Another one of the fired prosecutors, Melinda Williams, who was also involved in the fraud work, was on the call as well, the source said.

Thompson also indicated that he believed the shooting was justified, two sources said. Prior to the shooting, he had already been discussing the possibility of resigning, the sources said.

Videos of the shooting showed an ICE agent opening fire on Good at close range after she was seen accelerating toward the agent in her vehicle while he was standing in front of it. Critics have argued that the agent improperly used deadly force against Good and that she had turned the wheels of her vehicle away from the agent before accelerating.

The FBI is investigating the incident and has excluded Minnesota prosecutors from the probe, which the Trump administration has said is justified because the incident involved a federal officer. Minnesota leaders have denounced that decision and launched their own parallel investigation.

While supportive of conducting the investigation as an offensive against law enforcement — rather than a civil rights matter against the agent — Thompson had reservations during last week’s call about the DOJ’s plan to also investigate Good’s widow and other possible co-conspirators, the source familiar with the call said.

The FBI had developed evidence that suggested Good and her spouse had at some point been following ICE officers on the day of the shooting, the source said.

That revelation echoes Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s allegations during a recent press conference that Good had been “stalking and impeding” ICE throughout the day of the shooting. Noem said Good “weaponized” her vehicle and that the ICE agent who fired shots feared for his life.

In a statement to Minnesota Public Radio, Good’s spouse, Becca, said that on Jan. 7, the day of the shooting, she and Renee “stopped to support [their] neighbors.”

“We had whistles. They had guns,” Becca Good said.

FAMILIAR PROTEST GROUPS MOBILIZE IMMEDIATELY AFTER ICE SHOOTING OF MINNESOTA PROTESTER

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and other Democrats have lauded the prosecutors who resigned, framing their departures as a valiant boycott against DOJ.

“These prosecutors are heroes, and the people pushing to prosecute Renee’s widow are monsters,” Frey wrote on X.

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At this stage, there is no sign that the DOJ is planning to bring charges against Becca Good, despite the DOJ and FBI pursuing an investigation into her as part of a broader probe into any conspiracies to hinder federal law enforcement operations.

Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ for comment.

YouTuber to testify before Congress on Minnesota’s massive $9B fraud network investigation

FIRST ON FOX: The House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance is holding a hearing centered around various Minnesota fraud scandals and will feature testimony from Nick Shirley, a YouTuber and freelance journalist who helped uncover an organized fraud network in the state.

The hearing, “When Public Frauds are Abused: Addressing Fraud and the Theft of Taxpayer Dollars,” will be held Jan. 21, and will focus on several cases of fraud that took place in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

“I pulled up earlier today a report from last July, and they’re interviewing [Minnesota] residents,” Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., who chairs the subcommittee, told Fox News Digital. “You can’t keep anything on your porch or in your yard because it gets stolen, you get your windows broken out of your car.

 “It seems lawless,” he added.

GOP LAWMAKER MOVES TO AWARD CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL FOR JOURNALIST WHO EXPOSED MINNESOTA FRAUD

In 2022, federal officials in Minnesota launched an independent investigation into Feeding Our Future, a nonprofit that prosecutors later described as a key driver of what grew into one of the largest COVID-relief fraud schemes on record.

Over the course of the investigation, authorities uncovered an estimated $250 million in fraudulent claims, leading to criminal charges against 78 individuals. Prosecutors have said the total scope of the alleged fraud connected to the operation may ultimately approach $9 billion.

The hearing will feature testimony from Shirley in addition to Jennifer Larson, CEO of the Holland Autism Center and Clinic, and former Minnesota police officer and former Minnesota fraud investigator Scott Dexter.

PAM BONDI DISPATCHES FEDERAL PROSECUTORS TO MINNESOTA FOLLOWING SOMALI FRAUD ALLEGATIONS

Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, will be joining members of the subcommittee during the hearing. 

Rep. Laurel Lee, R-Fla., will also be in attendance, and told Fox News Digital the hearing’s purpose is a matter of “transparency, accountability and safeguards that prevent this kind of abuse from happening again.”

“The scale of fraud uncovered in Minnesota is staggering, and it represents an egregious abuse of federal taxpayer dollars by criminal actors,” Lee told Fox News Digital. “The House Judiciary Committee is committed to exposing the full scope of that fraud, understanding how it was carried out, and ensuring that taxpayer funds intended to help vulnerable Americans are not diverted into the pockets of criminals.”

JD VANCE ANNOUNCES MULTI-STATE FRAUD TASK FORCE IN WAKE OF MINNESOTA SCANDAL

Tensions in Minnesota rose after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) launched a massive operation in the state, in an attempt to locate and arrest illegal migrants who have committed crimes, as well as those who may have contributed to the fraud scandal.

A historic number of ICE agents were deployed to the state, which prompted agitators to clash with federal agents. 

Last week in south Minneapolis, an ICE officer shot and killed a 37-year-old woman, later identified as Renee Nicole Good, during a federal enforcement operation after authorities said her vehicle charged toward agents on the street. 

Good’s death sparked widespread protests and unrest in the city in the days that followed.

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DHS Secretary Kristi Noem described Good’s actions as “domestic terrorism,” claiming she attempted to use her vehicle against federal officers.

DHS also revealed Wednesday that the officer who shot Good suffered internal bleeding as a result of the incident.

GOP senator’s Stop Fraud by SOMALIA Act would force Minnesota fraudsters to repay stolen taxpayer funds

FIRST ON FOX: A Senate Republican wants to crack down on childcare providers convicted of fraud with legislation that would, among a handful of tweaks to current law, require the fraudsters to pay back the misspent taxpayer money.

The bill from Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, would amend the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act to impose harsher penalties on childcare providers convicted of fraud, and one of several moves in the upper chamber to tackle the sprawling Minnesota fraud scandal.

Cornyn’s bill, the Stop Fraud by Strengthening Oversight and More Accountability for Lying and Illegal Activity (SOMALIA) Act, is narrowly tailored toward addressing fraudulent activity in childcare and daycare centers, but the breadth and scope of the unfurling scandal goes beyond that.

‘TIP OF THE ICEBERG’: SENATE REPUBLICANS PRESS GOV WALZ OVER MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL

Federal prosecutors estimate that up to $9 billion was stolen through a network of fraudulent fronts posing as daycare centers, food programs and health clinics.

“The Minnesota scandal has exposed a deep-rooted, morally bankrupt fraud empire, and it is clear more must be done to rid our nation of these heinous criminals,” Cornyn said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

The legislation would require mandatory permanent debarment from all federally funded child care assistance programs, repay misspent federal funds, require referral for federal criminal investigations, and require states to enforce the above bans and halt providers from evading debarment by restructuring the business or changing the business name.

MINNESOTA FACES FUNDING DEADLINE AFTER TRUMP ADMINISTRATION FREEZES CHILD CARE PAYMENTS

There’s also an immigration component to the bill that would make non-citizens convicted of fraud deportable, bar them from asylum, adjustment of status, and subject them to mandatory detention and expedited removal.

Cornyn’s effort is one of many coming from the Senate GOP, where lawmakers are looking at several options to crack down on fraud, both in Minnesota and more broadly in the federal government.

USDA IMMEDIATELY SUSPENDS ALL FEDERAL FUNDING TO MINNESOTA AMID FRAUD INVESTIGATION

Every Senate Republican joined in on a letter to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz last week, and demanded that he provide a paper trail on the state’s role in the scandal. And Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., floated that budget reconciliation, the same procedure used to pass President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” could be used to deal with fraud.

And the Trump administration has moved to or threatened cancellation of federal funds to the state in the wake of the scandal.

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“I applaud President Trump for his efforts to end this corruption, and I’m proud to take it a step further with the Stop Fraud by SOMALIA Act, which would ensure these consequences are enshrined into law before any more funds are misused or sent overseas to fund American-hating terrorist networks like we saw in now-disgraced Governor Walz’s state,” Cornyn said.

House Dem lashes out at ‘racist’ MN fraud probe amid major investigation in his own state

As House Oversight Democrats denounced a hearing on Minnesota’s sprawling fraud scandal as politically motivated, Rep. Dave Min, D-Calif., took it further — calling the investigation “partisan and racist.” 

But back in California, state auditors have repeatedly flagged major programs as “high-risk” for waste and improper payments, raising fresh questions about whether Min is dismissing scrutiny he wouldn’t want aimed at his own state.

During a House Oversight Hearing earlier this month on the fraud issues in Minnesota, Min said, “We have not seen evidence of any type of fraud on the scale we’re talking about” in California. Min added during the hearing that he had concerns about the ongoing fraud in Minnesota, which has included a significant portion of Somali immigrant perpetrators, but said he had issues with the probe because it appeared Trump was only targeting Democrat-led states, and not Republican-led states as well. 

MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR JACOB FREY ADMITS FRAUD CRISIS IS REAL, SAYS ‘EVERYBODY COULD HAVE DONE MORE’ TO PREVENT IT

“I have concerns about this hearing as well as recent actions by the Trump administration. It’s hard for me not to look at this hearing in the context in which it’s taking place and not see this as a partisan and racist hearing,” Min complained.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment on these accusations from Min but did not receive a response in time for publication. 

“Democrats will do anything to deflect from the fraud that has been allowed to run rampant on their watch, including playing the race card,” House Majority Whip Tom Emmer said. “First, it’s not racist to call out criminal behavior. Second, I wonder what Congressman Min’s constituents have to say about him not taking fraud seriously when California taxpayers are also being robbed blind to the tune of $72 billion.”

A report released by the California State Auditor’s office last month found several state agencies wasted or misused millions, which follows other audits showing many billions being lost to waste, fraud and abuse in the state, according to California GOP gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton.

MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL SPARKS PUSH TO SCRUTINIZE BILLIONS IN BIDEN-ERA ENERGY GRANTS

“It’s totally ridiculous,” Hilton told Fox News Digital of Min’s comments that there is no evidence of California fraud. “We’ve already seen state auditor reports that have characterized tens-of-billions-of-dollars as being improperly spent, starting from the audit of state homelessness spending.”

According to Hilton, there are criminal prosecutions ongoing in California pertaining to homelessness spending by officials.

Meanwhile, seven state agencies in California have been denoted as “high-risk” for fraud, waste and abuse by the State Auditor’s office, while an extra agency was also added to the list of vulnerable programs that is regularly kept.  

“Vulnerable Democrat Dave Min is more outraged by an oversight hearing than the billions in fraud hurting Americans in Minnesota and California,” said National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Christian Martinez. “For Min, accountability isn’t a principle, it’s a problem.”

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Fox News Digital reached out to Min for comment, but did not receive a response in time for publication.