A Democrat representative in the Georgia House has resigned her position, as she now faces a federal charge in connection with alleged COVID relief fraud.
On Monday, federal prosecutors filed charges against former state Rep. Karen Bennett, claiming she lied to secure nearly $14,000 in COVID funds.
Bennett also allegedly withheld that she was receiving $905 weekly from a church 'the entire time she was claiming PUA benefits.'
According to court documents, Bennett, who owned a physical therapy business called Metro Therapy, applied for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance funds in May 2020, stating that she had been unable to go to her place of employment since April 10 because of quarantine and other COVID-related restrictions.
She was subsequently approved.
Between March and August 2020, she then posted certifications claiming that, aside from the $300 she received each week for her political position in the Georgia General Assembly, she earned no other income, court documents said.
However, according to prosecutors, Bennett served in an administrative role at Metro Therapy and worked from a home office, allowing her to continue earning a paycheck "throughout the pandemic."
"She was able to continue working as usual from her home to support Metro Therapy throughout the pandemic, and the therapists who provided actual services to clients were able to continue their work after a brief disruption," prosecutors asserted in charging documents.
Bennett also allegedly withheld that she was receiving $905 weekly from a church "the entire time she was claiming PUA benefits," court documents said.
In all, Bennett raked in $13,940 in fraudulent PUA and other federal funds, prosecutors alleged. She has been charged with one count of making false statements.
RELATED: Georgia Democrat indicted for alleged pandemic relief fraud
In court Monday, Bennett waived the indictment, pled not guilty, and posted bail. The AP indicated that many federal defendants who waive their indictments often eventually plead guilty.
On Thursday, four days before charges were filed, Bennett officially resigned her seat representing District 94, which includes parts of DeKalb and Gwinnett Counties. She was first elected in 2012.
Bennett also submitted a letter of resignation to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp. The letter, dated December 30, made no mention of possible criminal charges and gave no explanation for her departure.
Instead she wrote: "I am proud of the work accomplished by the Georgia General Assembly when we came together to advance policies that strengthened our state and improved the lives of all Georgians. Serving in this capacity has truly been a labor of love and one that I will miss."
A spokesperson from Bennett's former assembly office declined a request for comment from Blaze News. Bennett did not respond to a request for comment from the Georgia Recorder, and her attorneys did not respond to a request for comment from the AP.
Bennett is now the second Georgia Democrat accused of fraudulently obtaining COVID relief funds. Last month, state Rep. Sharon Henderson was arrested after she allegedly pocketed nearly $18,000, claiming she had been a substitute teacher in 2020, even as prosecutors say she had not worked in that capacity since 2018.
Henderson was charged with two counts of theft of government funds and 10 counts of making false statements — yet she still remains in office.
Just before Christmas, Henderson posted a note to social media, requesting donations to a crowdfunding account that she says will help her as she continues "seeking justice after recent events."
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Democrats bear clear responsibility for Minnesota’s spiraling federal program payment scandal. Either they failed to conduct meaningful oversight of billions in public funds over many years — or they conducted none at all. Their early response to the scandal explains why: They subjected its perpetrators to an unconscionably low standard of scrutiny.
What began as a fraud investigation into federal programs meant to feed poor children has expanded rapidly. During the pandemic, a nonprofit called Feeding Our Future became the centerpiece of what federal prosecutors described as the largest COVID-era fraud scheme, involving roughly $300 million. That scandal soon widened to include fraud in autism services and housing programs. Now investigators allege that day-care centers billed taxpayers for caring for nonexistent children — one facility even displaying signage with a misspelling of “learning.”
No criminal enterprise of this size and duration emerges unless its participants believe they will not face consequences. Democrats let the fraud happen.
As revelations mount, consequences follow. Former vice presidential nominee Tim Walz abruptly abandoned his bid for a third term as Minnesota’s governor. Yet nothing suggests the full scope of the scandal has come into view, either geographically or financially.
The estimated cost continues to climb. Last summer, a federal prosecutor put the total at more than $1 billion. Just last month, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson warned the figure could reach $9 billion — and that estimate covers only the schemes already uncovered. As trials proceed, new defendants emerge, and plea deals surface, the total is likely to rise farther.
Instead of demanding answers, Democrats rushed to deflect scrutiny. In Seattle, newly elected mayor and self-described democratic socialist Katie Wilson inserted herself into the controversy by issuing a statement “on the harassment of Somali childcare providers” and posting a hotline number for alleged “hate crime” victims — before any comparable fraud investigation had even begun.
Minnesota Democrats adopted the same playbook. They framed oversight itself as “racism,” attempting to shut down inquiry by exaggeratedly embracing the broader Somali community from which many of the fraudsters came. That rhetorical move does more harm than good. It links an entire community to criminal activity — something Democrats appear not to mind if it shields them politically.
Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan illustrated the tactic in a video statement delivered while wearing a hijab: “I am incredibly clear that the Somali community is part of the fabric of the state of Minnesota.” Flanagan, notably, is also running for the U.S. Senate in 2026.
The symbolism revealed more than intended. Democrats did not merely treat the Somali community as “part of the fabric” of Minnesota. They treated fraud perpetrators as apart from the fabric — exempt from scrutiny, audits, and accountability.
RELATED: ‘More corrupt than Minnesota’: Trump mocks Newsom after launching California fraud investigation
Local reporting points to warning signs stretching back more than a decade. Yet Democrats allowed massive federal programs to operate under standards so lax that fraud flourished unchecked.
Despite their rhetoric of inclusion, Democrats effectively segregated oversight itself. They refused to apply basic accountability to billions in taxpayer dollars. At minimum, that constitutes gross incompetence.
The underlying reality is simpler. Democrats let the fraud happen. Whether through neglect or willful blindness, they allowed these programs to operate without serious supervision while evidence of abuse accumulated.
Fraud on this scale does not persist without a sense of impunity. That impunity may have grown gradually through years of nonexistent audits and rubber-stamped claims. Or it may have been reinforced more explicitly. Either way, no criminal enterprise of this size and duration emerges unless its participants believe they will not face consequences.
The precise nature of Democrat culpability remains to be determined. Was it incompetence? A DEI mindset that discouraged scrutiny? Political quid pro quos? Tim Walz’s sudden exit from the governor’s race suggests that the answers may prove damaging.
What is already clear is this: Minnesota’s fraud scandal did not happen in spite of Democratic governance. It happened because of it.
The left immediately sees Somalis as oppressed by the white, straight, Christian patriarchy that it claims controls everything.
www.theblaze.com