(The Epoch Times)—Two federal agencies are “absolutely” taking steps toward revoking the citizenship of Somalis who have been convicted of fraud, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Dec. 31.
The Homeland Security and Justice departments are pursuing that type of action, Leavitt told “Fox and Friends.”
She was reacting to Rep. Tom Emmer’s (R-Minn.) Dec. 29 call for “denaturalization and deportation of every Somali engaged in fraud in Minnesota.”
Emmer, the GOP Majority Whip, hails from the state, which has gained national attention for its fraud crisis.
Since 2022, nearly 100 people, mostly of Somali descent, have been charged in various Minnesota fraud schemes.
Programs intended to provide meals, autism therapy, and housing assistance have been defrauded, authorities have said, leading to charges.
An additional major scandal is emerging over home health care, prosecutors announced after evidence was seized in mid-December. No charges have yet been filed.
Emmer’s call for deporting and denaturalizing Somali fraudsters followed FBI Director Kash Patel’s Dec. 28 statement that Somali fraud cases were “being referred to [immigration] officials for possible further denaturalization and deportation proceedings where eligible.”
Minnesota is home to almost 77,000 Somalians, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. Many of them are refugees who came to the United States legally.
However, concerns about widespread immigration fraud among Somalis have also sparked investigations.
Other state and federal leaders said they support action against Somalis linked to fraud.
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), a former attorney general in his home state, said laws allow for arrests and immigration enforcement actions.
“Enough talk about Somali fraud. We need immediate action,” he wrote on X on Dec. 30.
“One, arrest all Somali fraudsters under 18 U.S.C. § 1343 (wire fraud). Two, immediately revoke all Somali fraudsters’ visas. Denaturalize where possible. Three, deport all eligible for deportation.”
In recent weeks, publicity has surged over Minnesota’s fraud cases. Federal prosecutors estimate the state’s total fraud for just 14 scrutinized Medicaid programs could exceed $9 billion. That’s a fraction of the total 87 Medicaid programs that the state runs.
Leavitt said she expects legal challenges to the administration’s efforts to further penalize Somali offenders.
“There are liberal activist judges across the country who will try to block and tackle this administration from pursuing justice at every turn,” she said.
“But that’s not going to stop the president and his entire Cabinet from acting on behalf of law-abiding, taxpaying citizens in the state of Minnesota and in states across the country.”
She said the Trump administration will not tolerate “people who abused our immigration system, came to our country, do not love our country or respect our values, and now have been ripping off and stealing money from law-abiding Americans.”
Multiple federal investigations into Somali-led fraud networks were already underway, Leavitt said, well before YouTuber Nick Shirley released a viral video raising concerns about fraud in Minnesota’s day care centers.
Since Shirley’s video was posted on Dec. 26, it has drawn more than 132 million views on X alone.
In the video, Shirley visits Minnesota day care centers that are devoid of children, cites figures showing that the sites raked in large chunks of government-program money, and raises questions about the legitimacy of the businesses.
Shirley’s report sparked outrage and inspired citizens nationwide to do their own investigations of day care centers and other government-reimbursed programs.
Federal agencies ramped up investigative and enforcement actions, and the federal government cut off child-care funding to Minnesota while also insisting on better verification from states before payments are issued.
“Starting today, all [Administration for Children and Families] payments across America will require a justification and a receipt or photo evidence before we send money to a state,” Deputy Health and Human Services Secretary Jim O’Neill wrote on X.
And on Dec. 30, dozens of lawmakers in Ohio, home of the nation’s second-largest Somali population behind Minnesota, asked for intensified scrutiny of home health care and day care services.
Measures sought include audits and possible prosecutions, along with unannounced site visits.
National publicity about Minnesota’s fraud cases began rising after City Journal published a Nov. 19 report alleging that Somali fraudsters’ ill-gotten gains had been funneled, perhaps indirectly, to terrorists overseas.
Shortly thereafter, the Treasury Department began probing the fraud-for-terror claims.
Faisa Ahmed, who describes herself as a second-generation Somali Minnesotan, accused “right-wing influencers” of unfairly characterizing Somalis and calling for deportations earlier this year, well before publicity rose to its current levels.
In a Dec. 10 column in the Minnesota Reformer, Ahmed denounced people who “questioned U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s loyalty to America and called for her to be denaturalized and deported.”
Omar, a Somali-born Democrat, represents Minnesota in Congress.
“The Somali community I know is everything that conservatives and Republicans claim to want in America,” Ahmed wrote.
“We are people of deep and unwavering faith. We pray five times a day, no matter where we are, no matter who’s looking. We are generous people who give freely and without hesitation to our neighbors, regardless of where they’re from or who they vote for.”
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