Colorado lost access to $300 million in federal childcare and welfare funding January 6 because Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison got caught on tape helping fraudsters who donated to his campaign. The Trump administration froze funds to five Democratic states citing Minnesota’s fraud, but provided zero evidence Colorado did anything wrong.
Senator Josh Hawley confronted Ellison at a February 12 Senate Homeland Security hearing over a December 11, 2021 recording. Ellison met with Feeding Our Future leaders—a nonprofit later convicted of stealing $250 million in pandemic child nutrition funds. The tape captured Ellison promising to call investigators, get their names, and pressure agencies investigating them. Nine days later, $10,000 in campaign donations arrived from meeting attendees.
“You helped fraudsters defraud your state and this government, and you got a fat campaign contribution out of it,” Hawley said. “You ought to be in jail.”
Ellison called it “theatrical performance.” Hawley ended the exchange: “You should resign.” Ellison: “I was thinking the same thing about you!”
The Feeding Our Future scheme operated through a Minnesota nonprofit claiming to feed needy children during COVID-19. Federal prosecutors charged 78 defendants. Over 60 have been convicted. The fraudsters submitted invoices for millions of meals never served, spending taxpayer money on luxury cars, houses, and foreign real estate. Eighty-five of 98 federal fraud cases filed in Minnesota involve defendants of Somali descent. Federal investigators believe some funds reached Al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda-linked terrorist organization, through informal cash-transfer networks.
Minnesota’s fraud extends beyond Feeding Our Future. A housing stabilization scheme cost $104 million. Fraudulent autism treatment billing added hundreds of millions more. Federal prosecutors estimate total losses exceed $9 billion across 14 programs. Governor Tim Walz dropped his reelection bid January 5.
Colorado received no consideration. The state’s $138 million annual Child Care Development Fund serves 28,000 children. The $150 million TANF program supports 14,000 families living below 30 percent of federal poverty—about $10,000 annually for a family of four.
At a federal court hearing, Judge Vernon Broderick repeatedly asked DOJ attorney Kamika Shaw for evidence of Colorado fraud. Shaw cited “media reports” but couldn’t provide specifics. She didn’t know who drafted letters to Governor Jared Polis. She didn’t know whether the administration considered other states. Broderick issued a preliminary injunction February 6 blocking the freeze.
Minnesota’s pattern reveals systematic failure. State whistleblowers reported “concerns over being portrayed as racist made the Walz administration reluctant to pursue fraud allegations.” The legislative auditor found Feeding Our Future’s threats to accuse investigators of racism “affected the agency’s judgment.” FBI raids began January 2022—after years of documented fraud.
House Oversight Chairman James Comer sent Ellison a letter December 3: “You were caught on tape pledging to help Feeding Our Future fraudsters in a conversation that also included discussion of campaign donations.”
Colorado families relying on childcare subsidies to work didn’t bill the government fraudulently. Colorado welfare recipients living on $421 monthly didn’t steal $250 million. But Colorado lost $300 million because Minnesota’s Attorney General met with fraudsters, promised help, took their money, and did nothing until federal agents acted four years later.
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