WASHINGTON — A majority of Mississippi’s congressional delegation had little say about the vast welfare scandal that rocked the state for years and led to multiple people pleading guilty to state and federal crimes.  

Mississippi Today recently interviewed members of the state’s congressional delegation in Washington and asked each of them whether they were satisfied with the Department of Justice investigation, which began during President Donald Trump’s first term and stretched at least into the Biden administration. Congress has oversight of the Justice Department and has the authority to request information about the agency’s investigations.  

Seven people have pleaded guilty to crimes within the welfare scandal that first came to light in 2020. Millions of taxpayer dollars meant to provide support to the poor in one of the country’s most impoverished states were diverted to the rich and powerful — including pro athletes.

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In December 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Democratic President Joe Biden administration sent a penalty notice to Mississippi, determining the state must pay back nearly $101 million in welfare money it says officials misused. The state asked for an extension and has yet to make any repayment.

It’s unclear with a new Trump administration whether the investigation will ensnare more people or if the federal government will still force the state to repay the millions of dollars it believes were misused.

Prosecutors have suspended sentencing for the seven people until they decide they no longer need the defendants’ cooperation for potential cases against others. Federal authorities have been tight-lipped about the progress of their investigation or who else they might charge in the future.

Another person charged in connection with the scandal has been indicted on federal fraud charges. He has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial. 

Todd Gee, who was U.S. attorney for southern Mississippi during the Biden administration, resigned once Trump won reelection. Trump has appointed Baxter Kruger as the new federal prosecutor for the district, but the U.S. Senate has not yet confirmed him.

Five years after prosecutors indicted six people in connection with the scandal, and with a new federal prosecutor’s nomination pending, followers of the scandal continue awaiting a resolution — accountability for all perpetrators of the theft. Many are concerned a resolution may never come.

U.S. Rep. Trent Kelly, a Republican who represents northeast Mississippi, said he knew that some of the misspending involved an organization in his district, a reference to the Tupelo-based Family Resource Center. That nonprofit’s former director is one of the people who pleaded guilty to federal charges within the scheme. Kelly, a former district attorney, believes federal and state officials have dealt with the misspending. 

“I trust them to dig in,” Kelly said of the U.S. attorney’s office. “We’ve gone through multiple administrations with that. Hopefully, the people are going to be held accountable, or the money is returned if it was taken inappropriately. Or either people are validated in saying they didn’t do anything wrong.” 

U.S. Rep. Mike Ezell, a Republican who represents the Gulf Coast and south Mississippi, said he wondered how much political motives have influenced the trajectory of the investigation that has spanned Republican and Democratic administrations. The welfare scandal has at times sparked conflict between state officials, including Republican State Auditor Shad White and Republican Attorney General Lynn Fitch, both of whom are seen as prospective candidates for governor in 2027.    

“That’s one of those things that just seems to, you sometimes wonder how much politics are involved in it,” Ezell said. “You know, the attorney general’s in on it, the auditor’s in on it. I know they’ve had some back and forth with each other about it, so I just kind of want to let them folks handle it themselves. But I will say, if anybody’s broken the law, if anybody’s intentionally stolen money, they need to be held accountable.” 

The welfare scandal and the issue at its core — the misspending of cash assistance provided through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program — has remained a subject of concern in the state. Just last week, White’s office published a report alleging that a nonprofit that received over $2.4 million from the TANF program had fumbled its financial paperwork.     

U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, the state’s lone Democrat in Washington who represents the Delta region and most of Jackson, was the only congressman from the delegation who said he was not satisfied with the Justice Department’s investigation and believes state officials should be held accountable for the misspending that occurred under their watch. 

“I think the state of Mississippi should be made and held accountable for its lack of management of those taxpayer dollars because the … intentions of Congress were not met by the expenditure of those funds,” Thompson said. 

U.S. Rep. Michael Guest, a Republican who represents central Mississippi, said he had not been briefed on the investigation and referred questions to the Justice Department. U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, a Republican, similarly stated that he didn’t have enough information about the situation to comment on its status.

U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith is the only member of the state’s delegation who did not grant an interview to Mississippi Today in Washington or respond to a request for comment about the welfare scandal.

Since the scandal, the state has spent less TANF money for basic cash assistance to needy families. 

In 2023, the latest year for which federal data is available, the state spent about $4.3 million of its welfare funds on basic cash assistance – even less than the state spent during the height of the fraud scandal 2016-2019, when an average of around $8 million was going towards direct cash annually.

But that decline also predates the scandal.

The number of families, children and adults receiving basic cash assistance in Mississippi through the federal TANF program has consistently declined from around 25,000 people in 2010 to an all-time low of under 2,200 in 2023, ticking up slightly to 2,500 in the most recent available data. 

The Mississippi Department of Human Services has said that “a request for assistance in the State of Mississippi is a request for help in finding and keeping a job.” But in September 2024, the latest month available, only 310 adults were in the program. The vast majority of families on the program, or 1,143 out of 1,464, were “no parent” families, meaning they did not contain an adult participating in the TANF Work Program.

The state agency has paid nearly $2.1 million to Jones Walker, the law firm representing the state in its civil lawsuit aimed at recouping the misspent funds. Most of it has been categorized as spending under the state’s TANF Work Program since 2022. Though publicly visible work on the state’s civil case against numerous entities alleged to have misspent TANF dollars has slowed to a crawl since last year. Jones Walker has continued raking in funds, nearly $300,000 since the beginning of this year.

The state has spent roughly $100 million in TANF funds since the beginning of fiscal year 2024. 

Here are the complete responses from the congressional delegation when asked if they were satisfied with the investigation into the welfare scandal by the Department of Justice. 

Trent Kelly 

“It had very little impact on me, so I don’t know what’s done. I think a lot of that is for political posturing so to speak, people wanting to run for office. I trust the attorney general, I trust all those folks who were there, the governor, to get to the bottom of where they were.

“I know there were grants and things in my district that I think they addressed. I don’t spend a whole lot of time thinking about it. It’s not something I can impact. I’ve learned in life I impact things I can, and things that are outside of my purview I just don’t worry about a whole lot.”

“I trust them to dig in. We’ve gone through multiple administrations with that. Hopefully the people are going to be held accountable or the money is returned if it was taken inappropriately. Or either people are validated in saying they didn’t do anything wrong.” 

Bennie Thompson 

“Of course not. It’s, for all intents and purposes, I’m not aware that (the U.S. Attorney’s office is) doing anything at this point beyond those individuals who have pleaded guilty. And … of other ineligible individuals having received TANF money. I’m not aware of anything.

“I think the state of Mississippi should be made and held accountable for its lack of management of those taxpayer dollars because the people — that we did in Washington creating the TANF program – the intentions of Congress were not met by the expenditure of those funds.

“Now HHS obviously is derelict in its oversight responsibilities for the expenditure of those funds, also.” 

Michael Guest

“Neither I nor my office has been briefed on the federal investigation into this matter.

“I defer to the Department of Justice to answer any questions as to the status of the investigation and if any additional prosecutions may be forthcoming.”

Mike Ezell 

“That’s one of those things that just seems to, you sometimes wonder how much politics are involved in it. I really hadn’t put a lot of thought into that because, you know, my background being a law enforcement officer, I think if there was some cheating and there was some embezzling, if there was any sort of illegal activity, I’m sure that the auditor’s going to find it. And you know, those that need to be prosecuted, they’ll be prosecuted. You know, the attorney general’s in on it, the auditor’s in on it. I know they’ve had some back and forth with each other about it, so I just kind of want to let them folks handle it themselves. But I will say, if anybody’s broken the law, if anybody’s intentionally stolen money, they need to be held accountable.

“On issues with programs like TANF: When you set up a program, you’ve got to have checks and balances. And sometimes the big problem that I have seen in government is that we don’t have enough checks and balances to follow the money, to see where it’s going, to see that the people that need the money are getting the help that they need. And that that is one of one of the things that I have complained about over the years.”

Roger Wicker

“I really don’t know enough to comment on that.

“It’s not something that’s taking my time.” 

Cindy Hyde-Smith 

She did not sit down for an interview with Mississippi Today in Washington, and her office did not respond to a request for comment. 

Mississippi Today editor Anna Wolfe contributed to this report.