Meet Minnesota’s Hijab-Wearing, Children’s Gender Surgery Advocate Who’s Running For U.S. Senate

The Democratic race for the U.S. Senate seat from Minnesota being vacated by Democrat Tina Smith has turned into a competitive contest between moderate Democratic Representative Angie Craig and Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan. While Craig represents a more centrist wing of the party, Flanagan’s candidacy is defined by a hard-leftist record that has drawn both high-profile endorsements from figures like Elizabeth Warren and intense national scrutiny regarding state-level scandals. Flanagan has consistently aligned herself with radical progressive causes, often centering her leadership on identity-based advocacy. She has been a vocal supporter of Minnesota’s Somali community; the most recent example was a video that went viral over Christmas showing her wearing her version of a hijab and pledging to “have the back” of the community against the federal government. After a representative from the Somali community thanked her for “her support for the Somali community, [which] has been under attack from the federal government, specifically from President Trump and the ICE agents who are on the streets, attacking us because we are Somali, as the president instructed them to do,” Flanagan said, “I just want to encourage the community to know that we’re with you; we’ve got your back.” What a betrayal of subjugated women in the Muslim world. Wearing the hijab like it's a costume & not a tool of Islamist oppression. Gross. @peggyflanagan https://t.co/fPtKxNTx53 - Rita Panahi (@RitaPanahi) December 26, 2025 The alignment of Flanagan and the Somali community has become a flashpoint as critics link her administration’s policies to a lack of oversight regarding the Somali-tied welfare fraud schemes that have allegedly cost taxpayers billions of dollars. Under the Walz-Flanagan administration, Minnesota has been rocked by allegations of the “greatest theft of taxpayer dollars” in U.S. history. Investigations have revealed a sprawling network of fraud involving: Feeding Our Future: A $200 million fraud machine where executives fabricated meal counts to fund luxury lifestyles. Medicaid Exploitation: Housing stabilization payments soared from $2.6 million to over $104 million, while autism programs jumped from $3 million to $399 million due to inflated diagnoses and kickbacks. Terrorism Ties: Law enforcement sources and the Treasury Department are investigating claims that stolen funds were funneled through “hawalas” to the al-Qaeda-linked group Al-Shabaab. “What we see are schemes stacked upon schemes, draining resources meant for those in need. It feels never-ending,” U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson said. “I have spent my career as a fraud prosecutor and the depth of the fraud in Minnesota takes my breath away.” Christmas Sale - Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships “Our investigation reveals, for the first time, that some of this money has been directed to an even more troubling destination: the al-Qaida-linked Islamic terror group Al-Shabaab,” City-Journal reported . “According to multiple law-enforcement sources, Minnesota’s Somali community has sent untold millions through a network of ‘hawalas,’ informal clan-based money-traders, that have wound up in the coffers of Al-Shabaab.” “We believe that the Somali fraud operation in Minnesota is the single greatest theft of taxpayer dollars, through welfare...

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