CNN and MS NOW Ignore $9 Billion ‘Industrial-Scale’ Minnesota Fraud Claims

(Photo Credit: AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Federal prosecutors claim a wide-ranging Minnesota fraud scheme ripped off more than $9 billion in taxpayer dough — but loyal MS NOW and CNN viewers haven’t heard a thing about it.

A review of MS NOW and CNN’s broadcasts since December 18 — when prosecutors claimed the fraud operation was much larger than previously reported — shows it has not been mentioned a single time by either outlet. Both outlets do not have stories on the fraud scheme on their respective websites, either.

For comparison, Fox News has covered the topic dozens of times since then, and NewsNation also covered it a handful of times.

But there is an argument to be made that this is the biggest domestic story of the past month — and MS NOW and CNN have failed their viewers by ignoring it.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said the sprawling scam ripped off a number of government programs, from Medicaid to housing assistance to pandemic-era programs.

“The magnitude cannot be overstated,” Thompson said. “What we see in Minnesota is not a handful of bad actors committing crimes. It’s staggering, industrial-scale fraud.”

Thompson said the scam was so easy that it enticed crooks from other states to come to Minnesota to steal funds.

The scheme, the New York Post reported, was pulled off by “dozens of people — the vast majority from Minnesota’s Somali community.” More than 90 people have been charged.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) has faced sharp criticism for the scheme happening under his nose. He defended himself last week by saying prosecutors were “speculating” about the massive scope; to “extrapolate what that number is for sensationalism,” he added, “doesn’t really help.”

The scam has also led to criticism of Minnesota’s Somali community. And that distrust has only increased in the past few days, after independent reporter Nick Shirley went to several Somali-run daycare centers in Minnesota and found they were empty.

Employees were often hostile when asked basic questions about where the kids were or how Shirley could enroll his own kid. Shirley’s video report has been viewed more than 88 million times since being posted on December 26 — and has led to more questions about how brazen and deep the fraud scheme runs in Minnesota.

And as mentioned above, Shirley has done more reporting on the the topic than CNN or MS NOW.

There has been one reference to fraud in Minnesota since December 18.

On the same day prosecutors said the scheme was much larger than previously believed, MS NOW’s Katy Tur started her program off by saying President Donald Trump had “unleashed” an “attack” on Somalis over the fraud claims.

But not every mainstream outlet has acted like the story doesn’t exist. The New York Times reported in late November some Somalis living in Minnesota orchestrated a scheme that stole $1 billion in taxpayer money. Tur referenced the story in her intro — but did not mention the report was likely what spurred Trump’s harsh comments about Somalis in the first place.

In early December, Trump said he did not want more Somalis like Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) coming to the U.S. and “ripping off” taxpayers.

More recently, CNN and MS NOW commentators have simply ignored the fraud claims when discussing Trump’s comments on Somalis.

Rachel Maddow noted Trump had called Somalis “garbage” while talking to fellow MS NOW personality Nicolle Wallace, without mentioning the fraud claims. MS NOW anchor Richard Lui on Tuesday said Minnesota’s Somali community was “feeling [Trump’s] wrath,” without mentioning fraud. MS NOW political analyst Cornell Velcher on December 22 said the president was “attacking Somalian immigrants” and “calling them the most horrific and racist things,” without mentioning the fraud claims.

And on CNN, MeidasTouch commentator Adam Mockler on December 23 said Republicans were “targeting” Somalis, as well as Haitans, LGTBQ people, and women. Again, the fraud claims were not mentioned.

I’ll let you speculate as to why MS NOW and CNN keep failing to report the full story.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.