{"id":2519947,"date":"2025-12-11T07:42:02","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T12:42:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/local-news-claimed-somalis-add-to-the-state-economy-then-the-internet-did-the-math-it-didnt-add-up\/"},"modified":"2025-12-11T07:44:34","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T12:44:34","slug":"local-news-claimed-somalis-add-to-the-state-economy-then-the-internet-did-the-math-it-didnt-add-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/local-news-claimed-somalis-add-to-the-state-economy-then-the-internet-did-the-math-it-didnt-add-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Local News Claimed Somalis Add to the State Economy, Then the Internet Did the Math &#8211; It Didn&#8217;t Add Up"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">40<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flocal-news-claimed-somalis-add-to-the-state-economy-then-the-internet-did-the-math-it-didnt-add-up%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2519947&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A Minnesota news outlet, KSTP, published an article claiming that Somali immigrants in Minnesota contribute considerably to the state&#8217;s economy, generating at least $500 million in income annually and paying about $67 million in state and local taxes. The article argued that concerns about Somali immigrants&#8217; reliance on welfare and unemployment were exaggerated. However, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/social-media-accuses-kim-kardashian-of-cultural-appropriation-again\/\" title=\"Social Media Accuses Kim Kardashian Of Cultural Appropriation \u2013 Again\">social media users criticized<\/a> the article, pointing out that it overlooked important factors such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/deporting-illegal-immigrants-is-not-enough\/\" title=\"Deporting Illegal Immigrants Is Not Enough\">high welfare usage<\/a>, a 58 percent poverty rate, a 40 percent unemployment rate, a 42 percent food stamp usage rate, and low educational attainment within the somali community-figures that are much worse than Minnesota state averages. Additionally, critics highlighted a recent $1 billion state services fraud scandal linked largely to members of the Somali community, challenging the positive portrayal of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-breathe-sigh-of-relief-over-trumps-tariff-retreat-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Republicans breathe sigh of relief over Trump\u2019s tariff retreat - Washington Examiner\">thier economic impact<\/a>. Commentators also noted that the average tax contribution per Somali immigrant was significantly lower than that of the average Minnesotan, and the article failed to account for remittances sent abroad. The debate unfolds amid broader discussions on immigration restrictions by the federal government,particularly concerning migrants from countries with security concerns such as Somalia and Afghanistan.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Minnesota news outlet KSTP published an article claiming that Somali immigrants are a net benefit to the state economy, but <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >social media users quickly identified major issues<\/a> with the claim.<\/p>\n<p>KSTP published an <a href=\"https:\/\/kstp.com\/kstp-news\/top-news\/somali-minnesotans-drive-economic-growth-pay-67m-taxes-annually\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">article<\/a> on Dec. 3 entitled &ldquo;Somali Minnesotans drive economic growth, pay $67M taxes annually.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In essence, the article claimed that because Somali immigrants &ldquo;generate at least $500 million in income annually&rdquo; and pay &ldquo;about $67 million in state and local taxes,&rdquo; arguments regarding their excessive reliance on the welfare state and high unemployment levels are overblown.<\/p>\n<p>But social media commenters found several realities the article was not considering, including the welfare use, as well as a recent $1 billion state services fraud scandal driven largely by members of the Somali community.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;So they only owe, what, $933,000,000.00 for the autism center fraud alone? Excellent propaganda point,&rdquo; Federalist editor-in-chief Mollie Hemingway <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MZHemingway\/status\/1996655735569371276\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrote<\/a>, subtracting the $67 million tax revenue from the total amount of reported fraud.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Somali Minnesotans generate at least $500 million in income annually and pay about $67 million in state and local taxes. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/bfyS71ZQQD\">https:\/\/t.co\/bfyS71ZQQD<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; KSTP (@KSTP) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KSTP\/status\/1996397815522615599?\">December 4, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Dustin Grage, a Townhall columnist based in Minnesota, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GrageDustin\/status\/1996552925099983230\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">added<\/a> some more figures to the discussion.<\/p>\n<p>Somalis have a 58 percent poverty rate, a 42 percent food stamp usage rate, and a 40 percent unemployment rate, while 41 percent do not have a high school education.<\/p>\n<p>All of those statistics are several times more severe than the Minnesota state averages.<\/p>\n<p>Daily Wire podcast host Matt Walsh crunched some more numbers based on the KSTP report.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There are around 80 thousand Somalians in Minnesota. If they contribute 67 million dollars in state and local taxes, that means they each pay on average about 800 bucks or so,&rdquo; he noted.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;To put that in perspective, the average Minnesotan pays anywhere from 8 to 10 THOUSAND in state and local taxes. Which means Somalians are contributing more than 10 times less, to say nothing about the billions of dollars in fraud.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">There are around 80 thousand Somalians in Minnesota. If they contribute 67 million dollars in state and local taxes, that means they each pay on average about 800 bucks or so. To put that in perspective, the average Minnesotan pays anywhere from 8 to 10 THOUSAND in state and&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/kpDwlXcbEJ\">https:\/\/t.co\/kpDwlXcbEJ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MattWalshBlog\/status\/1996582432166838409?\">December 4, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Walsh concluded, &ldquo;The media is trying to make the point that Somalians contribute to the economy but instead they&rsquo;ve proved exactly the opposite.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Other commenters noted the same realities.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You forgot to divide by the population. You also forgot to tally the tax dollar consumption, including fraud,&rdquo; one <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ValidScience\/status\/1996626049111855248\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Anyone with a basic ability to do math knows this is not a positive argument for the Somalis,&rdquo; another <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/reddotaustintx\/status\/1996632698753097827\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">noted<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And still more observed that remittances, or the money sent overseas to other countries by foreigners working in the United States, were not even considered.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Now show their remittances back to Somalia. I dare you,&rdquo; one user<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MaryForbes14\/status\/1996434428143223266\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> challenged<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The debate over the value of Somali immigrants, whether illegal or legal, comes as the Trump administration restricts Third World migration.<\/p>\n<p>That policy was spurred by an Afghan refugee killing a National Guard member and gravely injuring another in late November.<\/p>\n<p>Both Afghanistan and Somalia are predominantly Islamic nations with active terrorist groups.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Minnesota news station KSTP released an article asserting that Somali immigrants positively contribute to the state&#8217;s economy. However, social media users quickly pointed out significant problems with this claim. The Dec. 3 article, titled &#8220;Somali Minnesotans drive economic growth, pay $67M taxes annually,&#8221; argued that since Somali immigrants generate at least $500 million in income yearly and pay about $67 million in state and local taxes, concerns about their heavy reliance on welfare and high unemployment are exaggerated. Yet critics highlighted overlooked factors such as welfare usage and a recent $1 billion fraud scandal involving state services linked largely to the Somali community. For example, Federalist editor Mollie Hemingway noted that subtracting the tax revenue from the fraud amount reveals a substantial deficit related to this group.<\/p>\n<p>Additional commentary from Minnesota-based Townhall columnist Dustin Grage emphasized troubling statistics: Somalis face a 58% poverty rate, 42% food stamp usage, 40% unemployment, and 41% lack of high school education-figures far worse than Minnesota averages. Daily Wire host Matt Walsh further analyzed KSTP&#8217;s numbers by pointing out that with roughly 80,000 Somalis in Minnesota paying $67 million in taxes total, each pays around $800 on average-significantly less than the typical Minnesotan who pays between $8,000 and $10,000 annually. Walsh concluded that rather than proving economic contribution, these figures suggest otherwise.<\/p>\n<p>Other commenters echoed these critiques by noting failure to account for per capita tax contributions or government spending including fraud costs; some also mentioned remittances sent abroad were ignored entirely. This debate over Somali immigrants&#8217; economic impact arises amid tightened immigration policies under the Trump administration following security concerns linked to refugees from countries like Afghanistan and Somalia-both predominantly Muslim nations with active terrorist groups<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2519948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Michael-Featured-Image-406.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[68627,36854,68625,68626],"class_list":["post-2519947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-internet-analysis","tag-local-news","tag-somali-economy","tag-state-economy"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Michael-Featured-Image-406.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2519947"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2519951,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519947\/revisions\/2519951"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2519948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2519947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2519947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2519947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}