We thought we’d read everything on the Minnesota fraud scandals in which billions of dollars were looted from federal social programs and 110 Individuals have been indicted.  But yesterday, the House Oversight committee released its report titled “The Cost of Doing Nothing,” detailing how a trio of power-hungry pols – Governor Tim Walz, state AG Keith Ellison and Rep. Ilan Omar – repeatedly failed to act.

The testimony from nearly 30 whistleblower state employees and participants in the programs is damming.

Here are key findings from the report:

• Governor Walz and Attorney General Ellison were aware of credible and systemic fraud in Minnesota’s social services programs as early as 2019 but failed to take action to protect taxpayer funds.
• Minnesota state agencies had clear authority to suspend or stop payments to providers suspected of fraud without requiring independent direction from courts, law enforcement agencies, or the federal government but failed to act.
• Minnesota officials continued directing taxpayer dollars to Feeding our Future and other high-risk entities despite identifying serious program deficiencies, enabling hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds to flow to fraudsters.
• The Walz Administration retaliated against state employees who raised concerns about fraud, while senior state officials prioritized managing political and media fallout over addressing known fraud vulnerabilities.
• Failures to prevent fraud resulted in an estimated $300 million in federal child nutrition funds being lost and potentially $9 billion in Medicaid-related funds to be lost or placed at serious risk.

It’s scary to think that Tim Walz might have been one heart beat away from the presidency.

This week, the House will move to enact ten Oversight Committee bills designed to stop rampant fraud and improper payments in federal programs. Vice President Vance’s task force is also on the case:

The savings are potentially gigantic: The Government Accountability Office (GAO) estimates that between $233 billion and $521 billion is lost annually due to fraud.