Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., expressed frustration Sunday with the framing of the massive “Feeding Our Future” fraud scheme that’s embroiled members of the Somali community in her state, saying many Somalis were victims as well since they could have benefited from the program.

“Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan called the extent of the scam “shocking,” noting it was the Biden-era Department of Justice that said it was the largest COVID-19 fraud scheme in the nation and the majority of the reported offenders were Somalis, adding to the “spotlight” on Omar’s community.

“Why do you think this fraud was allowed to get so widespread?” Brennan asked.

“I want to say this also has an impact on Somalis, because we are also taxpayers in Minnesota,” Omar said. “We also could have benefited from the program and the money that was stolen. So it’s been really frustrating for people to not acknowledge the fact that we’re also, as Minnesotans, as taxpayers, really upset and angry about the fraud that has occurred.”

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT MINNESOTA’S ‘FEEDING OUR FUTURE’ FRAUD AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP’S LATEST CRACKDOWN

Brennan asked Omar if there had been a failure by the Minnesota state government, which is dominated by Democrats.

“That is what I alluded to in my letter that I had sent to the Secretary of AG was to see where things were going wrong. How can this amount of money disappear fraudulently without there being alarms set off?” Omar asked. “And it is something that, you know, we have to continue to investigate. We have to continue to ask those questions.”

President Donald Trump and other officials have zeroed in on this and other alleged fraud schemes in recent weeks, arguing that the criminal activity is a result of mismanagement and “incompetence” from Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat and former vice presidential candidate.

MS NOW HOST CALLS MASSIVE MINNESOTA FRAUD SCHEME ‘ISOLATED’ IN INTERVIEW WITH M ATTORNEY GENERAL

Trump and Omar have traded barbs in recent days as well, with Trump calling Somalis “garbage” and saying they should return to their home country. Omar and other critics have called the remarks bigoted and said Trump is trying to distract from his own policy failings.

The back-and-forth comes as Minnesota has come under fresh scrutiny for alleged mismanagement of federal funds, including in distributing money for the nonprofit “Feeding Our Future” program.

Prosecutors have labeled the fraud scheme in the state as the largest pandemic fraud scheme in the country, stemming from allegations that the Minnesota nonprofit and its associates defrauded federal child-nutrition programs for hundreds of millions of dollars in COVID-19 aid.

The New York Times reported last month, “Over the last five years, law enforcement officials say, fraud took root in pockets of Minnesota’s Somali diaspora as scores of individuals made small fortunes by setting up companies that billed state agencies for millions of dollars’ worth of social services that were never provided.”

$1 BILLION REPORTEDLY STOLEN IN FRAUD UNDER MINNESOTA GOV. WALZ

Omar said she was one of the first members of Congress who inquired about what she called a “reprehensible” scam.

Omar previously told local outlet KARE 11 News, “The alleged fraud scheme orchestrated by ‘Feeding Our Future’ is reprehensible. Using the guise of feeding children to funnel millions of dollars toward extravagant expenses is abhorrent, and anyone who participated in this scheme must be held accountable.”

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Fox News Digital’s Brenna Deppisch and Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.

Kenley Jansen is destined for the Baseball Hall of Fame.

The 38-year-old right-handed reliever is fourth on the all-time saves list, first on the active saves leaderboard, 24 saves away from the 500 milestone and just signed a one-year contract that guarantees $11 million.

But he hasn’t received the closer role from the Detroit Tigers for the 2026 season.

“Will we label Kenley the closer?” Tigers president baseball operations Scott Harris said Wednesday, Dec. 17, deferring to manager A.J. Hinch. “I don’t know. That’s going to be for A.J. to figure out. I’m just going to try to give him as many options as possible.”

BIG NAME, BIG CONCERNS: Grading Tigers signing Kenley Jansen: 1-year, $9 million

Entering 2026, Jansen – a four-time All-Star in his 16-year MLB career – trails only three relievers on the saves list, all three of which are Hall of Famers: Lee Smith (478), Trevor Hoffman (601) and Mariano Rivera (652).

MILWAUKEE — A federal jury found Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan guilty Thursday of obstructing immigration agents as they attempted to arrest an undocumented immigrant defendant last April. 

Eduardo Flores-Ruiz was appearing in Dugan’s court on misdemeanor battery charges. Flores-Ruiz, a Mexican national, was arrested outside the courthouse after a short chase by the immigration agents and has since been deported.

A grand jury indicted Dugan the following month. She denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to the federal charges of obstructing a proceeding, a felony, and of concealing an individual to prevent an arrest, a misdemeanor. She was found not guilty of the misdemeanor charge.
 
During the trial, federal agents testified Dugan seemed “angry” when she approached them in the public hallway where they were waiting to arrest Flores-Ruiz after his hearing. They testified that she asked the agents if they had a judicial warrant, sent them to speak with the chief judge, rushed Flores-Ruiz’s case through, and allowed him and his attorney to leave the courtroom through the jury door, which led back to a public hallway.

During the government’s closing argument, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Watzka said Dugan conducted a “round-up” of federal agents and sent them to the chief judge’s office.

Watzka said Dugan then created an “escape route” for Flores-Ruiz when she let him exit a door defendants don’t usually go through. Prosecutors also played courtroom audio of Dugan saying she’d “take the heat” for her actions.

Dugan’s attorneys argued that immigration enforcement policy at the courthouse was in-flux at the time, which led to Dugan’s confusion, and that after Dugan let Flores-Ruiz go through the jury door, he ended up back in the public hallway. They argued this showed she wasn’t concealing him. 

Dugan did not testify during the trial. 

Dugan attorney Jason Luczak told the jury: “You’re the check on government overreach. Use your power to do justice in this case. You have the power to correct this unjust prosecution. It’s your decision and justice is in your hands.”

Until President Trump’s first term, courthouses were typically off-limits to federal authorities, including immigration agents. He implemented a policy in 2018 giving agents broader authority and has now ramped up immigration enforcement during his second term.