House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said he is prepared to subpoena Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as part of the panel’s expanding investigation into an alleged multimillion-dollar fraud scheme involving state aid distributed through nonprofits. Comer’s warning follows intensified scrutiny of Minnesota’s oversight systems after prosecutors charged individuals — many of Somali descent — with diverting more than $1 billion in taxpayer funds intended for child nutrition, housing assistance, and autism therapy programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Comer told Just the News that Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison have avoided fully cooperating, arguing their responses will be crucial to determining how the alleged fraud persisted for so long. He suggested the behavior of state officials signals serious oversight failures and predicted political consequences for Walz as investigations continue.
The scandal — which included the now-defunct nonprofit Feeding Our Future — has prompted federal inquiries and fueled political tensions within Minnesota’s Somali community amid unverified allegations that some funds may have reached extremist groups such as Al-Shabaab. Republican lawmakers have long claimed that Democratic-run welfare programs are susceptible to waste and abuse, a narrative that gained new traction after the Department of Government Efficiency canceled several USAID contracts earlier this year, citing concerns about mismanagement. Comer argued that Minnesota may be the most severe example but said similar issues likely exist in other states where Democratic governors have resisted sharing data with Congress or federal agencies overseeing programs like SNAP.
Comer also pointed to his broader oversight work, including bank records he previously released showing Hunter Biden received roughly $6.5 million from Ukrainian firm Burisma and testimony alleging that Joe Biden was placed on calls with Hunter’s business associates. Meanwhile, Newsweek reported that an anonymous account claiming to represent hundreds of Minnesota DHS employees accused Walz — who ran on the 2024 ticket with former Vice President Kamala Harris — of failing to prevent large-scale fraud within the state’s aid programs.