MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — President Donald Trump has linked his administration’s immigration crackdown against Minnesota’s large Somali community to a series of fraud cases involving government programs in which many defendants have roots in the east African country.
In recent comments, Trump labeled Minnesota Somalis as “garbage” and expressed his desire for fewer to reside in the U.S. His assertions come as Republicans intensify their criticism of Governor Tim Walz, accused of failing to prevent the fraud, which is now a key issue in the race for the 2026 gubernatorial elections.
Minnesota hosts the largest Somali population in the U.S., with around 84,000 individuals making up part of a broader demographic of 260,000 Somalis nationwide. Despite Trump's claims, the vast majority of this population are American citizens, with nearly 58% born in the U.S. and 87% of foreign-born individuals being naturalized citizens.
Recent federal investigations have revealed staggering losses, with the most notable case, Feeding Our Future, projected to involve $300 million in fraud. U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson suggested that losses across all cases could exceed $1 billion, a figure that Republicans are using to bolster their narrative against Walz's administration.
As these cases unfold, the Feeding Our Future initiative — a nonprofit accused of exploiting a child meal program during the pandemic — has seen its roster of defendants swell from the initial 47 charged to 78 individuals amid newfound investigations. Notably, over 90% of those charged are of Somali descent, leading to community leaders like U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar speaking out against the stigmatization of the entire population.
Omar unveiled a wider discussion about systemic fraud, denouncing Trump's rhetoric as harmful and divisive. Meanwhile, although some media outlets have circulated allegations that fraud proceeds may have funded terrorist groups like al-Shabab, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has stated that there is currently no evidence to substantiate these claims.
Omar remains confident that if any verifiable links to terrorism were present, they would have surfaced by now, reiterating that if any taxpayer funds were misappropriated, accountability must be ensured.
