Federal prosecutors in Minneapolis are investigating serious and pervasive welfare fraud in the Somali community. It’s an inevitable consequence of the perpetual growth of America’s welfare state.
Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson has charged eight Minnesota men, six of whom are Somali, with wire fraud for setting up fake companies to steal money from the Housing Stability Services program, part of the state’s Medicaid offerings. After costs soared, the Minnesota Department of Human Services is currently in the process of shutting it down.
Thompson was a federal prosecutor for 16 years before being appointed U.S. attorney, and he specialized in fraud cases. This is not a Trump appointee who is in over his head. Sadly, Minnesota has been a hotbed of welfare fraud for years.
City Journal reports that at least 56 people have pleaded guilty due to a federal fraud investigation into a Minnesota nonprofit called Feeding Our Future. The group went from receiving $3 million in federal funding in 2019 to almost $200 million two years later. Much of the money went to fund lavish lifestyles for the group’s leaders.
Similarly implausible increases in autism-related Medicaid claims occurred in the same time span. Thompson’s office has charged a woman with wire fraud for allegedly making up autism diagnoses for children and then paying kickbacks to their parents as part of a $14 million scheme. More charges are expected for these and other schemes.
The individuals charged are innocent until proven guilty, and obviously most Somali immigrants aren’t criminals. It can also be tempting to downplay fraud involving millions of dollars when the federal budget is in the trillions.
Defrauding the government is not a minor issue, though. The Government Accountability Office estimates that federal improper payments totaled $162 billion last year and $2.8 trillion since fiscal year 2003. Even if only 10 percent of the reported improper payments are due to fraud, that’s $280 billion stolen from taxpayers since 2003. If it’s only 5 percent, that’s $140 billion.
President Donald Trump responded Friday to the fresh reporting about the fraud by announcing that he will terminate Temporary Protected Status for Somalis in Minnesota. But TPS only covers about 700 Somalis in the entire country, and most in Minnesota are U.S. citizens.
Welfare fraud isn’t an immigration problem. The covid pandemic showcased the willingness of many native-born Americans to take advantage of government programs with weak fraud controls, with the GAO estimating hundreds of billions of dollars stolen. Just this week, Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Florida) was indicted for allegedly conspiring to steal $5 million in federal disaster funds that were meant to slow the spread of the pandemic. The congresswoman maintains her innocence.
Kvetching about defrauding the government is often seen as a right-wing issue. But people who think that some of the government’s most valuable work includes spending money to help marginalized communities should be much more upset about billions in government funds going to fraudsters. Most conservatives assume government money will probably be wasted anyway.
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