Taxpayer money in Minnesota vanishes into a maze of fraud, while those tasked with guarding it face threats and silence.
The Democratic political machine in Minnesota, heavily influenced by Somali community leaders, has blocked hundreds of government experts from exposing massive fraud in taxpayer-funded programs, as revealed by Minnesota House Rep. Marion Rarick in a recent House hearing, according to Breitbart.
Nearly 1,000 auditors, accountants, and program managers have been muzzled by tactics like threats of termination without unemployment benefits and blacklisting from state and county jobs. Rarick laid bare a system where dissent means career ruin, especially in Democrat-controlled areas like Hennepin and Ramsey Counties.
Back in 2015, fraud investigator Steve Halicki pointed out the sham, telling a local TV station, “They don’t want a fraud unit to do anything — they want a fraud unit [only] on paper.” That statement cuts to the bone, exposing a facade of oversight while funds slip through unchecked.
By 2023, frustrated state employees banded together anonymously on Twitter, forming a group of over 480 to sound the alarm on fraud. Their cry on January 7 rang clear: “We’ve been yelling from every rooftop possible about fraud,” yet systemic rot in leadership keeps the problem buried.
Journalists in Minneapolis, once a voice for truth, now buckle under the weight of political and economic pressure from Somali migrant networks tied to the local Democratic Party. Citizens’ complaints vanish into the same void, drowned out by clannish loyalties within the political structure.
Rarick told the House committee about the chilling consistency of whistleblower fears, quoting their collective message: “Instead of focusing on fraudsters, [the Minnesota Department of Human Services] leadership focused its surveillance on employees.” That flips accountability on its head, turning protectors of public funds into targets.
Since early 2025, the whistleblower group swelled to over 1,000 across state agencies, gripped by dread of retaliation. They’ve confided in Rarick, thanking the House fraud prevention committee for amplifying their inside information while shielding their identities.
Faye Bernstein, a former compliance specialist, faced the wrath firsthand, telling Newsweek on December 13, 2025, “Minnesota DHS functions in the opposite manner — employees who suggest improvements, or, heaven forbid, report fraud then face significant retaliation.” Her story of being escorted out, investigated, and barred from DHS properties after flagging sloppy contracts in 2019 shows the cost of speaking up.
Bernstein’s advice to others is blunt and grim: “So today, if someone asked me, should I report fraud within DHS? I say no, no, no, it is career suicide, plus a whole lot more.” Her words paint a workplace where integrity is punished, not rewarded.
Rarick, drawing on his background as an accountant, shared chilling details from whistleblower meetings, noting threats of firing without benefits and blacklisting across state and major county roles. Even worse, veiled hints of military intelligence use and personal intimidation tactics, like supervisors probing about employees’ children and bus stops, create a climate of fear.
Whistleblowers also uncovered surveillance of their emails and chats, with DHS scouring for keywords like “fraud” or “overpayments.” Photos of their homes and cars tucked into personnel files only deepen the sense of being hunted rather than heard.
A stark example of leadership’s tone came on April 12, 2024, when Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan publicly mocked the whistleblower X account at a DHS equity conference, calling them “weirdos and losers sitting in their mother’s basement.” That jab, delivered to gasps from hundreds in attendance, shows how far officials will go to dismiss legitimate concerns.
Rarick asserted that Governor Tim Walz was fully aware of the vast embezzlement by Somali-run businesses, pointing to a troubling blind eye at the top. This isn’t just negligence; it’s a betrayal of the public trust that hardworking Minnesotans deserve.
The broader pattern of sidelining American professionals for compliant foreign labor, seen in tech and accounting nationwide, mirrors this Minnesota debacle. When dissent is crushed, whether by political machines or profit-driven employers, the loss falls on ordinary citizens who rely on transparency to safeguard their taxes, safety, and data.
