MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says it is freezing federal funding meant to help many low-income families across the country pay for child care. The move comes just days after the Trump administration singled out Minnesota following a video from a conservative influencer going viral. The influencer claimed without evidence that day care centers operated by Somali residents in Minneapolis had committed up to $100 million in fraud. In a few minutes, we'll get an assessment of the administration's actions from a former federal prosecutor, but we're going to start with details from Minnesota.
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Minnesota Public Radio's Clay Masters joins us now from St. Paul. Clay, back in the Biden administration, federal prosecutors launched major fraud cases against mostly Somali American defendants, and there are state investigations as well. So what's new with what's going on now?
CLAY MASTERS, BYLINE: Yeah, I mean, we've been covering those criminal cases not just about day care facilities, but also fraud tied to Medicaid, cases that have led to convictions. But this latest move from the Trump administration started over the Christmas holiday, when an online influencer with ties to the MAGA world alleged that several day care centers run by Somali immigrants were taking public money without providing care. The man can be seen going up to various centers, knocking on doors and asking to see the children that go to the day care centers. It was posted on the social media site X and then re-posted by the likes of Vice President JD Vance, SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
It also comes following racist comments from President Donald Trump accusing Somali communities here in Minnesota of widespread fraud. He called them, quote, "garbage" and talked about deporting Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who is a U.S. citizen. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has already ramped up its presence in the Twin Cities, A, through the month of December, as well.
MARTÍNEZ: OK. Now, the Trump administration's response was to withhold child care funding in all states for some people. So what does that mean?
MASTERS: It could be really bad news for families with kids. This applies to the Child Care and Development Fund, which provides monthly child care subsidies to low-income families. Nationwide, approximately 1.4 million children and over 857,000 families per month received child care assistance in 2019. Now, 2019 - that's the latest information on the government website. In Minnesota, where I am, 23,000 children use the child care assistance program each month. Here's Maria Snyder (ph), a St. Paul child care director, at a press conference yesterday.
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MARIA SNYDER: Many of the families at my center are one paycheck away from becoming homeless. I'm not exaggerating. If child care assistance is turned off, children can't come to care.
MASTERS: And a spokesman for Health and Human Services says the agency could unfreeze funding after state agencies provide certain, quote-unquote, "administrative data." The deputy secretary said that could include receipts and photo evidence. Meanwhile, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison says his office is exploring all legal options to ensure that critical child care services do not get abruptly slashed based on what he calls pretext and grandstanding.
MARTÍNEZ: OK. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is the former Democratic vice presidential candidate. How does he fit into all this?
MASTERS: Right. Well, yeah, I mean, this is all definitely political, too. Governor Walz announced he's running for a third term this new year, and this is the issue he is likely most vulnerable on. He has a lot of Republican challengers, including Minnesota's Republican speaker of the House, Lisa Demuth. Demuth told reporters this week that her House caucus steered the YouTuber to the day care sites in Minnesota. In a statement after the child care funding freeze, a spokesman for Governor Walz said he's been combating fraud for years while the president has been letting fraudsters out of jail. The statement goes on to say, fraud is a serious issue, but this is a transparent attempt to politicize the issue, to hurt Minnesotans and defund government programs that help people.
So I don't expect this to quiet down anytime soon here in Minnesota in this election year, where Republicans think they have a shot at the state's top job. In fact, next week, the Republican-led House Committee on Oversight and Government will hear from Republican state lawmakers here, and they have invited Governor Walz and Attorney General Ellison to attend, as well.
MARTÍNEZ: That's Clay Masters of Minnesota Public Radio. Thanks, Clay.
MASTERS: My pleasure. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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