A viral 42-minute video by independent journalist Nick Shirley exposed suspicious Minneapolis childcare centers, including one misspelled “Quality Learing Center” that was licensed for 99 children but showed no activity, despite receiving millions in state funds.
For context, this scandal fueled criticism of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz amid a broader scandal involving at least $1 billion in alleged social services fraud tied to the Somali community, with some funds reportedly reaching Al-Shabab. Prominent figures like JD Vance, Mike Lawler, Donald Trump Jr., and Elon Musk demanded accountability, prosecutions, and hearings on X.
Vice President JD Vance quipped that this scandal was “a microcosm of the immigration fraud in our system.” Building on this point, he added, “Politicians like it because they get power. Welfare cheats like it because they get rich, but it’s a zero sum game, and they’re stealing both money and political power from Minnesotans.”
Echoing this point, Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) called for accountability. “Folks need to be arrested and prosecuted and the Governor of Minnesota needs to be held accountable,” he noted. “Congress should hold a hearing immediately and start getting answers.”
Adding his own take, Donald Trump Jr. was irate.”If you haven’t watched this yet. Watch it. All of it. Understand that this is what journalists are supposed to do, but no one in the mainstream media will even bother to look let alone actually publish it. This is what they’re doing to your country with your tax dollars!!!” he said.
Similarly annoyed, Elon Musk noted, “The more you look at it, the more you will be horrified at what your tax money is doing and the fact that, if this is not reversed, your vote will mean nothing.” In another comment he advocated: “Prosecute [Tim Walz].”
Rounding out his comments, the former DOGE head noted a specific, “The most obvious case example is the Somali voting bloc in Minnesota, a state that historically had zero Somalis, electing Ilhan Omar to the US Congress.”
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Reacting to this scandal on social media, Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN) posted, “A citizen journalist, @nickshirleyy, did more regarding the Somali daycare fraud in a 40 minute video than Tim Walz has done in SEVEN YEARS. Stop lying Timmy, take accountability for what you did!”
Reposting a clip of his documentary, the citizen journalist said, “Here is the full 42 minutes of my crew and I exposing Minnesota fraud… We uncovered over $110,000,000 in ONE day… Its time to hold these corrupt politicians and fraudsters accountable.”
Annoyed, another user asked, “Why is YouTuber, Nick Shirley, getting more accomplished in exposing Minnesota’s fraud than DOJ, FBI & HHS combined?… We demand the Somalis be deported… & Tim Walz indicted.”
In the comments under this tweet, Americans expressed their anger. “I’ll tell you exactly why, all this stuff is just subsidized profits. You give an immigrant millions of dollars, they are spending it in other places. Cars, Property, Food. So the local government is getting paid. It’s all a big circle jerk,” one conservative wrote.