Omar Accused of Fraud Scheme, Skips Hearing

0:00On April 22nd, Minnesota lawmakers are pointing fingers at Congresswoman Ilhan Omar for helping set up a massive fraud scheme that stole over two. $150 million in federal funds meant for kids' meals. The accusations came out during a State House Committee hearing on Tuesday, where Republicans claimed her 2020 Meals Act bill opened. The door to the feeding our future scandal. The biggest pandemic fraud case in the country. That bill expanded who could get reimbursements from the child nutrition program when schools shut down for COVID. lawmakers say it cut back on safety checks, letting non-school groups claim money for meals that never even happened. Shell companies and fake claims drained the cash for things like luxury rides and trips abroad. Omar skipped the hearing even after they asked her to show up. Instead, they played a video of her pushing the bill in Somali media and shouting out a restaurant tied to the fraud ring. Democrats fired back, saying the law was just about getting food to hungry kids during lockdowns.

1:00The fraud hit Minnesota harder than other states, prosecutors say, with no real meals served in tons of cases. Meanwhile, Omar's facing heat over her finances too. Her latest filing slash reported assets from up to $30 million down to under one. $100,000 blamed on paperwork mix-ups. As the committee digs deeper, they're pushing for Omar's testimony or written answers to connect the dots on her role. This story's far from over, with oversight ramping up on how pandemic aid went wrong. That's the story for today, U.S. News Today. Driven by AI, I'm Corey with The Story.