Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) was likely connected “hand in glove” to the welfare fraud that journalists and federal investigators have exposed in the state.
That’s the assessment of the Government Accountability Institute’s Eric Eggers after reviewing the financial connections between Omar and the owners of one of the Minneapolis “Safari” restaurant that, investigators say, received millions from the state government for fraudulently claiming to have provided meals for schoolchildren during COVID.
“It’s not just that her name shows up in court documents. She herself shows up in a commercial for her campaign with one of the restaurants that was found to be the most egregious in terms of fabricating fraudulent meals,” Eggers tells Shannon Cake of Newsmax. “So, she is hand in glove connected to the fraud that occurred in her state.
Eric Eggers appeared on the program to break down Ilhan Omar’s documented connections to the “Feeding Our Future” fraud scandal, a $250 million scheme that diverted federal pandemic relief funds meant for needy children into fake meal sites, shell companies, and luxury purchases by the fraudsters, including purchasing Bentleys, Ferraris, and Lamborghinis.
Eggers notes Omar filmed a commercial for her congressional campaign at the Safari Restaurant, a Somali immigrant-run eatery identified as the most egregious fabricator of fraudulent meals in the case. The Minnesota legislature contacted her six times, through voicemails, formal letters, and scheduling portal requests, and Omar has refused to appear or respond, which Eggers calls a scandal in its own right.
“It’s not just a political issue,” he said of the scandal. “It’s also a cultural issue. Whether it’s Ilhan Omar or [outgoing Gov.] Tim Walz, basically every Democrat in Minnesota presided over this in some way.” He noted that the state’s Attorney General, Keith Ellison, was captured on audiotape pledging “support to a Somali businessman a month before they were raided by the feds,” and noted that in an interview on GAI’s podcast, The Drill Down, a state legislator said that Tim Walz actively worked to keep other law enforcement mechanisms from being created by the legislature.
Going further, Eggers drew parallels to welfare fraud investigations in other states. “Democrats nationwide saw what happened in Minnesota and said, ‘Let’s take the guy who ran the Democrat Party in Minnesota, Ken Martin, and have him run the party nationally.’”
“What’s happening in California is as bad as it is because this is part of the Democrat playbook,” he said. “They took it in Minnesota and expanded it nationwide.”
Host Shannon Cake reads a tweet from the Trump administration’s fraud task force that says they found that “14,000 people receive food stamps while driving luxury cars in just one state. We’re talking Bentleys, Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Maseratis. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins claims that 4.3 million Americans have been moved off of the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program.”
In California, investigative journalist Nick Shirley the owners of several fraudulent hospice businesses were driving BMWs.
“I wonder if there are different levels of what kind of fraud you participated in and what luxury vehicle you have,” Eggers quipped. “Like if you’re in hospice care fraud, you only have a BMW. But if you’re on SNAP fraud, you get the Maserati. Different economies of scale.”
Finally, he noted that US Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), who is running for governor, has pledged to help root out the fraud that others have uncovered if she wins election in November.
“Amy Klobuchar, as a senator, is acting as though she has to be elected governor to do anything about this? This is federal money coming through the US Department of Agriculture. Amy Klobuchar could look into this today if she wanted to. But she’s going to pretend she has to be elected governor to do anything about it.”
“Amy Klobuchar should not be taken seriously, nor should any other Democrat attempting to be anything other than a facilitator of this fraud,” he said.
