Category: Minneapolis
Who is Nick Shirley, YouTuber who made viral Minnesota fraud video?
YouTuber Nick Shirley became a viral sensation overnight after posting a 42-minute video documenting his hunt for fraudulent child care programs in Minnesota. Shirley’s video has been viewed more than 100 million times on the social platform X and shows him visiting day care centers receiving public funds. The 23-year-old alleged that multiple local centers…
Watch How Minneapolis Mayor Panders To Somalis In Worst Way During Fraud Scandal
‘I would very much like to visit Somalia’
Federal Prosecutors Who Indicted 78 Fraudsters Aren’t ‘Adding Value’ in Minnesota, St. Paul Mayor Says
The Democratic mayor of St. Paul, Melvin Carter, said federal officials aren’t “adding value” in Minnesota because it was the “state’s law enforcement presence” that uncovered the largest COVID fraud scheme in the country. Federal prosecutors have indicted 78 individuals associated with that fraud scheme, while the state has indicted 0.
The post Federal Prosecutors Who Indicted 78 Fraudsters Aren’t ‘Adding Value’ in Minnesota, St. Paul Mayor Says appeared first on .
It’s not ‘racist’ to notice Somali fraud
Last week, my colleague Ryan Thorpe and I broke a story about widespread fraud committed by Somalis in Minnesota. Members of the state’s Somali community allegedly participated in complex schemes related to autism services, food programs, and housing, which prosecutors estimate have stolen billions of taxpayer dollars. Even worse, some of the cash has ended up in the hands of Al-Shabaab, a terrorist organization in Somalia.
The story quickly reached the White House. Within days, President Trump announced that he was revoking Temporary Protected Status for all Somali migrants in Minnesota.
Progressives have suggested that our reporting and the subsequent policy change were “racist.” While many of those indicted in these schemes are Somali, these critics argue, the federal government should not hold Minnesota’s Somali community corporately responsible for the actions of individuals.
Little Mogadishu in Minneapolis has a real problem, and it is about time that our government began facing it.
This criticism is superficially appealing, but it isn’t persuasive on closer inspection.
First, a description of the facts should not be measured as “racist or not racist,” but rather as “true or not true.” And in this case, the truth is that numerous members of a relatively small community participated in a scheme that stole billions in taxpayer funds. This is a legitimate consideration for American immigration policy, which is organized around nation of origin and, for more than 30 years, has favorably treated Somalis relative to other groups. It is more than fair to ask whether that policy has served the national interest. The fraud story suggests that the answer is “no.”
Second, the fact that Somalis are black is incidental. If Norwegian immigrants were perpetrating fraud at the same alleged scale and had the same employment and income statistics as Somalis, it would be perfectly reasonable to make the same criticism and enact the same policy response. It would not be “racist” against Norwegians to do so.
Further, Somalis have enormously high unemployment rates, and federal law enforcement has long considered Minneapolis’ Little Mogadishu neighborhood a hot spot for terrorism recruitment. We should condemn that behavior without regard to skin color.
The underlying question — which, until now, Americans have been loath to address directly — is that of different behaviors and outcomes between different groups. Americans tend to avoid this question, rely on euphemisms, and let these distinctions remain implied rather than spoken aloud. Yet it seems increasingly untenable to maintain this Anglo-American courtesy when the left has spent decades insisting that we conceptualize our national life in terms of group identity.
The reality is that different groups have different cultural characteristics. The national culture of Somalia is different from the national culture of Norway. Somalis and Norwegians therefore tend to think differently, behave differently, and organize themselves differently, which leads to different group outcomes. Norwegians in Minnesota behave similarly to Norwegians in Norway; Somalis in Minnesota behave similarly to Somalis in Somalia. Many cultural patterns from Somalia — particularly clan networks, informal economies, and distrust of state institutions — travel with the diaspora and have shown up in Minnesota as well. In the absence of strong assimilation pressures, the fraud networks aren’t so surprising; they reflect the extension of Somali institutional norms into a new environment with weak enforcement and poorly designed incentives.
The beauty of America is that we had a system that thoughtfully balanced individual and group considerations. We recognized that all men, whatever their background, have a natural right to life, liberty, property, and equal treatment under the law. We also recognized that group averages can be a basis for judgment — especially in immigration, where they can help determine which potential immigrant groups are most suitable and advantageous for America.
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Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
These principles are in tension but not in contradiction. As a sociological matter, a policy of equal rights for all individuals will result in unequal outcomes among groups. This is not a sign of injustice per se. It is an inevitability. No two groups are the same, and therefore, no two groups will have the same outcomes in a system of individual liberty and equality.
The firestorm around the Somali fraud story was so intense precisely because it forced this question into the spotlight. For decades, America has given Somali immigrants special privileges through TPS. We have expected Somalis to play by the rules, contribute to the country, and assimilate into the culture. Some individuals have certainly done so, but as the fraud story suggests, many others have not. A rational government would amend its policies accordingly.
We can see the same process playing out in other parts of the world. In the United Kingdom, mass immigration from incompatible cultures is creating a civilizational crisis. Rather than replicate the policies of our sister country, we should accept reality and adopt a more thoughtful policy, which recognizes cultural norms as a reasonable measure of capacity to assimilate and to contribute.
The president should stand firm. Little Mogadishu in Minneapolis has a real problem, and it is about time that our government began facing it.
Editor’s note: This article appeared originally on Substack.
Minneapolis mayoral race enters second round of ranked-choice vote counting
Minneapolis is still counting votes in its ranked-choice mayoral race after no candidate received more than 50% of the votes in the first round.
‘Everybody, this city showed up once again. … We got what appears to be near record turnout. And I’ll tell you what — it looks damn good for us.’
Minneapolis residents cast their votes between incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey (D), who is seeking a third term, and over a dozen other candidates. Voters were allowed to rank up to three candidates.
Frey held a 10-point lead over state Sen. Omar Fateh (D), considered his top challenger, in voters’ first-choice results. Frey received approximately 61,000 votes, which accounted for only 42% of the total, not enough to declare him the winner.
The mayoral election will now proceed to a second round of counting to determine the winner. In each round, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, and their ballots are redistributed to the next-ranked candidates on voters’ ballots. This process continues until one candidate secures a majority of the votes.
The Minneapolis mayoral races have gone to at least a second round of tabulations since 2013. Frey won after six rounds in 2017 and after two rounds in 2021.
State Sen. Omar Fateh, Rep. Ilhan Omar. Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Fateh, a Muslim Somali American and progressive Democrat who has been compared to New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, secured the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party’s endorsement in July, defeating Frey. However, that endorsement was rescinded a month later, citing “substantial failures in the Minneapolis Convention’s voting process.”
Fateh was endorsed by Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), who hoped to boost his campaign by joining him on the campaign trail.
“I am really excited to have her support,” Fateh said. “Minneapolis seems to be a tale of two cities: one for the wealthy and well-connected and one for everyone else.”
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Jacob Frey. Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Gov. Tim Walz (D) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D) endorsed Frey.
While it is still possible for Fateh to squeak out a victory over Frey, the current mayor holds a comfortable lead.
“Everybody, this city showed up once again. … We got what appears to be near record turnout. And I’ll tell you what — it looks damn good for us,” Frey stated at an election night party.
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