President Donald Trump’s administration is keeping its focus squarely on Minnesota, with the head of the U.S. Small Business Administration the latest to order an investigation into the state.
In a social media post, SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler wrote, “Numerous individuals and nonprofits indicted in the $1 billion Minnesota COVID fraud scandal, including Feeding Our Future, received SBA PPP loans in addition to other state and federal funding. Today, I have ordered an investigation into the network of Somali organizations and executives implicated in these schemes.”
KSTP’s Full Feeding Our Future Coverage
Loeffler went on to accuse Gov. Tim Walz of obstructing, although it’s unclear what, if anything, she was specifically referring to. The SBA supports small businesses with funding and a variety of programs.
During an event Tuesday morning, Walz addressed the recent federal investigations into the state, saying, “When the president of the United States sits up and tweets 150 times after midnight and targets certain people, it’s not a coincidence that they’re targeting Minnesota. We certainly welcome those investigations — they’ve been done by all of you and they’ve been done here — we certainly want to know that. … This is who they are.”
Loeffler’s announcement comes just a day after the secretaries of both the U.S. Treasury and Transportation Departments posted about the state.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a post on X that his agency is investigating claims that defrauded Minnesota tax dollars were sent to a terrorist group, while Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy threatened to withhold more than $30 million in funding to the state after claiming one-third of commercial driver’s licenses in Minnesota were issued illegally. No evidence was shared by either agency but 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS continues to track both stories.
RELATED: Federal funding in Minnesota at risk after review finds issues with commercial drivers licenses
The Department of Justice has also sued Minnesota and threatened the state’s funding in recent months over so-called sanctuary city policies, alleged Title IX violations, access to voter rolls and college tuition benefits for undocumented immigrants.
Additionally, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has signaled its intention to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali and Karen individuals. Minnesota has the largest Somali and Karen populations in the country.
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS has extensively covered Feeding Our Future, which is the largest COVID-19 fraud scheme in the country, according to prosecutors, and has resulted in charges against nearly 80 people so far.
The Feeding Our Future defendants are accused of using nutrition program funds for their own gain rather than for feeding children, as intended. However, many of those same individuals also received fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loans, prosecutors say.
RELATED: Somali community in Minnesota voices concerns about the loss of Temporary Protected Status
The last count from Minnesota Compass showed nearly 80,000 Somali residents in Minnesota — roughly 1.3% of the state’s population. It’s estimated that fewer than 1% of those 80,000 residents have TPS.
This is a developing story. 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS continues to dig into this and will work to provide updates.
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