Americans once associated Minnesota with lakes, gophers, hockey, and brutal winters. But now the North Star State stands as one of the great failures of liberalism. More people are moving out of the state than moving in. It’s getting older and poorer. And its state government faces a massive budget deficit in its future.

This was once one of America’s whitest states, with far more Scandinavians than the descendants of slaves. It was (and still is) one of the most progressive states in the union. The lack of awareness of the dangers of diversity seemingly encouraged white liberals in the state to try their hand at Scandinavian-style social democracy. Just like in Sweden, it drew some of the worst migrants in the world. Ordinary Minnesotans now pay the price.

The state stands rightfully in President Donald Trump’s crosshairs over its massive Somali welfare fraud scandal. Minnesota demonstrates what happens when socialism, immigration worship, and other leftist neuroses take over an entire state. 

The Gopher State was once a thriving place. The Minnesota Miracle of 1971, an ambitious legislative package aimed at reforming the state’s fiscal policy, managed to reduce personal taxes and generate more revenue for the state. It became the basis for the state’s future success and large surpluses, allowing the government to create a generous welfare apparatus. It also attracted tech companies to set up shop in the state, contributing to an economic boom that began in the 1990s.

But while the state did have increased prosperity, it began to experience greater net-out migration than net-in migration in the early 2000s. The state’s population growth for the past two decades has come entirely from foreign immigrants. This changed its demographics. In 1990, Minnesota was nearly 95 percent white. Today, it’s 76 percent white. Yet Minnesota still had its charms and healthy budget surpluses into the early 2020s. 

But, since George Floyd’s death, things have progressively gotten worse. Democratic leaders literally stood with the rioters against public order. Minneapolis’s Mayor Jacob Frey cried over George Floyd’s casket and marched with Black Lives Matter. Governor Tim Walz dragged his feet on sending in the National Guard to deal with the rioters while his daughter aided them. (Naturally, he blamed the violence on “white supremacists.”)

Following the riots, city and state leaders implemented “criminal justice reforms” to please aggrieved leftists. Police were hampered from properly doing their job. Crime skyrocketed, with both Minneapolis and neighboring St. Paul reaching homicide records the following year. Businesses in the area where Floyd died struggled with a dramatic decline in customers and increasing rate of violence. They sued the city last year for not adequately policing the area. Minneapolis witnessed a drop in its population. Vacant lots now dot the city, and there’s no sign they’ll be filled any time soon.

But the Floyd riots didn’t create the state’s woes. They only exposed and exacerbated them. Minnesota’s core problems are its welcoming attitude toward migrants and its generous welfare system. 

Minnesota is one of the top destinations for refugee resettlement in America. This is due to its relatively low cost of living and the state’s eagerness to take in these migrants. Its refugee focus makes it one of the rare states with more African migrants than Hispanic newcomers. It’s also why so many Somalis live there. The East Africans began moving to the state in the 1990s, drawn by its hospitality to such migrants. Nearly 80,000 Somalis now live in the North Star State.

This hospitality wasn’t just the friendly attitude evinced by its residents. The state also offered substantial benefits to migrants. The Brookings Institution ranks the state as being one of the “generous” states in terms of its social safety net. Immigrants have taken full advantage of it, as evidenced by the insane welfare fraud scandal. Somali scammers were able to exploit the state’s resources and extract an estimated billion dollars from taxpayers. 

But it’s not just a few bad apples exploiting the system. The majority of Somalis are enjoying Minnesota’s generosity. As the Center for Immigration Studies reports:

[BLOCK]About 54 percent of Somali-headed households in Minnesota receive food stamps, and 73 percent of Somali households have at least one member on Medicaid. The comparable figures for native households are 7 percent and 18 percent.

Nearly every Somali household with children (89 percent) receives some form of welfare.[/BLOCK]

The Somalis have repaid this generosity by becoming a hub of Islamic extremism. Many of the fraudsters were directing their ill-begotten gains to al-Shabab, an Al Qaeda offshoot. 

But state leaders seem uninterested in changing course. In 2023, Minnesota opened up its Medicaid program to illegal immigrants. Over 17,000 illegal aliens are now enrolled, which has helped double cost projections. State leaders are rallying to defend its welcome mat to immigrants amid Trump’s criticism. Walz is even telling crowds he wants more Somalis to move to his state. No lesson was learned from the fraud scandal. 

It’s a different story in the lands where many Minnesotans came from. Scandinavia also provided a generous welcome mat to immigrants. Sweden took in more migrants per capita than any other European state during the Syrian refugee crisis. Migrants were happy for the hospitality, considering Sweden’s extravagant welfare state. All Sweden got out of this is one of the highest murder rates in Europe. 

But the Nordic countries have grown tired of mass immigration and are now seeking to reverse course. Denmark’s left-leaning government has led the way with strict restrictions on legal immigration and limits on access to welfare benefits for migrants. Sweden is also clamping down on immigration and seeking to encourage the foreign-born to leave.

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It contrasts starkly with Minnesota’s attitude. Nothing will convince the Democrats in charge to turn away from wanting more immigrants and wanting more welfare. The state can no longer afford this dynamic, but that still isn’t enough to dissuade Gopher State liberals. 

One would hope that greater exposure to the diversity Minnesota liberals invited would change their minds. But the commitment to their faith is too strong, even stronger than that of Scandinavian socialists. They’d rather be defrauded by Somalis and stand against MAGA.

If you want to see America’s future under complete liberal control, just look at the failed state of Minnesota.