Minnesota's Big Money Mess: What's Really Going On?

Minnesota is in hot water. The Small Business Administration (SBA) has put a freeze on nearly 7, 000 loans. Why? Because there's a big fraud scandal brewing. These loans, worth up to $400 million, were given out during the COVID-19 pandemic. The idea was to help small businesses, but it seems some people took advantage. The SBA's big boss, Kelly Loeffler, said these loans were given to people who did something fishy. Now, those people can't get any more loans from the SBA. Plus, they might have to pay back the money and could even face time in jail. But Loeffler didn't say who these people are or which businesses they run. She did say this is just the start, and more states might be looked at too. This isn't the only trouble Minnesota is facing. The Department of Health and Human Services also froze childcare payments. And the FBI and Department of Homeland Security are looking into more suspected fraud. The Biden administration had been investigating this for years, even before Trump's second term. They've already arrested and convicted dozens of people.One of the biggest scams was in a program meant to feed hungry kids. More than $250 million was stolen from this program. Over 80 people have been charged, and at least 60 have been convicted. Most of them are U. S. citizens of Somali descent. President Trump has been talking about this scandal a lot. He's criticized Minnesota's governor, Tim Walz, who ran against him in the 2024 election. Trump has also said some not-so-nice things about the Somali community in Minnesota. The White House is even thinking about taking away the citizenship of those involved in the fraud. Governor Walz is under a lot of pressure. He's trying to fight these scams by making state agencies work harder to find and stop fraud. He even started a statewide fraud prevention program and hired a former FBI agent to lead it. But Republicans in Congress want him to testify about the scandal in February.