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Minnesota Republican senatorial candidate David Hann is asking on one among his potential Democratic opponents to apologize after a video of her carrying a hijab and supporting the Somali neighborhood amidst a large fraud scandal went viral on social media.
“It is emblematic of the best way she and different Democrat politicians in Minnesota have behaved over the previous decade or so. They’re very political,” mentioned former Minnesota state Sen. David Hann, who’s working for Senate within the Republican main, of Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan’s video carrying a hijab and defending the Somali neighborhood amid a large fraud scandal that has rocked Minnesota over the previous a number of years.
“They simply are pandering to political constituencies, and so they’re not doing the job that they have been elected to do.”
Within the video, which was broadly criticized by conservatives on social media final week, Flanagan may be seen donning a hijab whereas speaking to Somali constituents.
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Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan is dealing with backlash over a viral video defending Somalis amid a large fraud scandal. (Getty)
“Salam alaikum,” Flanagan says within the video giving an Arabic greeting earlier than saying, “The Somali neighborhood is a part of the material of the state of Minnesota.”
“I’m right here procuring at this time and simply encouraging other people to point out up, help our Somali companies, help our immigrant neighbors, and I do know that issues are scary proper now,” Flanagan added within the video that was aired on Somali TV.
“Being a part of Minnesota and rising up right here, the Somali neighborhood has all the time been part of my Minnesota,” Flanagan added, whereas telling residents to “present up and help our Somali companies and our immigrant neighbors.”
“We’ve obtained your again,” Flanagan mentioned.
Flanagan, who has not spoken out in response to the viral investigation from journalist Nick Shirley highlighting the alleged fraud drawback in Minnesota, confronted criticism over the video from those that accused her of downplaying the scandal.
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“That is what political efficiency appears to be like like — symbolism over accountability — whereas billions in taxpayer {dollars} vanish,” Fox Information anchor Laura Ingraham posted on X. “Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan wears hijab in solidarity with Somalis as feds probe multibillion-dollar fraud scandal.”
Hann instructed Fox Information Digital that Flanagan ought to apologize for and retract the video.
“They didn’t do their obligation out of concern that they might offend a political constituency,” Hann mentioned. “So that they have not carried out something to take duty for what the general public expects them to do. So sure, she ought to apologize.”
“She definitely shouldn’t be despatched to Washington to supervise federal {dollars} being spent. Nevertheless it’s emblematic of the best way Democrats have ruled on this state. They wish to posture, they like to inform folks how compassionate they’re. They inform us our excessive taxes are serving to folks, however they actually have not demonstrated a priority for serving to folks. They’re extra enthusiastic about simply spending.”
Fox Information Digital has extensively reported in current weeks on the Minnesota fraud scandal, together with issues that the concern of being referred to as “racist” helped present cowl for the fraud, which primarily occurred throughout the state’s Somali neighborhood.
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Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan speaks as Gov. Tim Walz, proper, listens. (Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune through Getty Photographs)
“The Somali voting block is important within the Minneapolis space, after all, and so they’re involved about that,” Hann instructed Fox Information Digital. “And sure, I’ve seen these studies as nicely, that there have been issues about how this would seem. A lot of the fraud was carried out by Somalis who put up these shell firms and looted the general public treasury and I feel the Democrats have been involved that in the event that they went after that, they might seem like choosing on the Somali neighborhood when, in truth, they wanted to implement the regulation.”
“I feel each neighborhood needs to see the legal guidelines enforced and other people in Minnesota wish to see legal guidelines enforced. And this is the reason that is so horrible. They’re simply failing to do the obligation that they have been elected to do.”
The lieutenant governor, who has been in workplace since 2019, is difficult two different Democratic candidates within the Senate main race to fill the seat of outgoing Democratic Sen. Tina Smith. Former Democratic presidential candidate and present Sen. Amy Klobuchar serves as the opposite senator from the state.
In an announcement to Fox Information Digital, Flanagan spokesperson Alexandra Fetissoff mentioned the main focus ought to be on the Trump administration’s efforts to deport unlawful immigrants in Minnesota.
“Whereas the Lt. Governor was displaying her help for small companies and communities being terrorized by ICE, she was handed a shawl by a buddy and briefly wore it out of respect,” Fetissoff mentioned. “The true outrage shouldn’t be a shawl, however masked males throwing Americans into vans and violating the structure.”
Flanagan’s staff additionally clarified that whereas many on social media have claimed she mentioned Somalis “constructed” Minnesota, “she doesn’t say that within the video.”
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Senate candidate David Hann speaks to Fox Information Digital in a 2024 interview when he was chair of the Minnesota GOP. (Fox Information Digital)
Final week, Fox Information Digital first reported on laws launched by GOP Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks named after Tim Walz that’s geared toward addressing future fraud like what has occurred in Minnesota and will complete as a lot as $9 billion, in accordance with federal prosecutors.
If elected to the Senate, Hann instructed Fox Information Digital he would push for extra “safeguards.”
“However I feel we must also be , how can we reform the entire welfare institution?” Hann defined.
“Are there higher methods to assist folks? We ought to be extra involved about attempting to ensure folks’s lives are improved, quite than simply spending cash. It appears to me that the Waltz administration has been targeted on simply handing out cash, Democrats in Washington simply hand out the cash and no accountability and no try to determine the effectiveness of the applications that we now have, we have to take a tough have a look at that.”
Fox Information Digital’s Preston Mizell contributed to this report.
