Minnesota’s fraud scandal has gone fully national. Citizen journalists in other states are investigating their versions of the programs that have been defrauded to the tune of billions of dollars in Minnesota. And James Comer’s House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has announced hearings to begin on January 7:
NEW: House Oversight Committee Chairman @RepJamesComer announces the committee’s first hearing into the MN Somali fraud scandal will be on January 7th & will feature MN state lawmakers who sounded the alarm on the fraud & were allegedly ignored. MN Gov. Tim Walz & AG Keith… pic.twitter.com/jrSFEa7GKM
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) December 31, 2025
The initial witnesses include Minnesota House members Walter Hudson and Kristin Robbins, both of whom are friends of mine. Kristin chairs the Fraud Committee in the Minnesota House, which was established at the beginning of the 2025 session in response to our state’s rampant criminality. She is also one of the Republican candidates for governor.
It is worth noting that the Fraud Committee was established during a window when the Republicans held a 67-66 majority in the Minnesota House. That eventually became 67-67 after a special election. The Democrats never would have agreed to a committee to combat fraud if they had been able to block it.
Comer has also invited Tim Walz and Keith Ellison to testify. It is hard to imagine that they will appear, but it will be quite a show if they do.
Meanwhile, House Whip Tom Emmer, who represents Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, has come out for denaturalization and deportation:
As I wrote here, the bar for denaturalization is, perhaps surprisingly, not particularly high. In principle, I would think that any Somali who is convicted of fraud (there have been something like 60 or 70 so far, with more to come) would be subject to denaturalization. Denaturalization is a one-at-a-time remedy, and thus not a solution to our broader immigration problems. But denaturalizing and deporting fraudsters would send an important message. I hope federal authorities will follow through.
