Donald Trump called me “crooked as hell” as he spread lies about the fraud that occurred in Minnesota. Any keen observer will recognize the pattern of inciting hostility against me and the Somali community whenever his own failures and corruption catches up to him. He routinely reaches for the same tired playbook of lies, racism and deflection.

This is not a new strategy. Lyndon B Johnson once said: “If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.” This is exactly what Trump’s doing: demonizing Black and brown people so that we pay less attention to him picking our pockets in broad daylight. He uses fraud as a political cudgel while protecting his donor base and enriching himself.

The truth is Trump doesn’t care about addressing fraud. He has repeatedly pardoned and rewarded some of the most brazen financial criminals. He pardoned Philip Esformes, convicted in what his own Department of Justice described as the “largest health care fraud scheme ever charged”.

He granted clemency to Lawrence Duran after a $205m fraud conviction. He commuted Jason Galanis’s sentence and pardoned Devon Archer, who were both tied to tens of millions in fraud, and also pardoned Joseph Schwartz for a $38m fraud scheme, and reality stars Todd and Julie Chrisley for multimillion-dollar bank fraud. He’s now defrauding the American people further by creating a $1.8bn slush fund of taxpayer dollars to compensate people he pardoned for beating cops and ransacking the US Capitol on January 6 after they pleaded guilty or were convicted of such crimes.

Fraud should be rooted out wherever it occurs. Anyone who exploited programs meant to feed children or provide social services should be prosecuted. That applies no matter who or where it happens. From the moment the Feeding Our Future scheme came to light, I publicly called for federal investigations and supported prosecutions for everyone involved.

As someone who cares deeply about making sure children are fed, I was outraged. I survived the agony of hunger as a child living in a refugee camp. I know the sharp pain of an empty stomach, but even more haunting was the anguish in the eyes of parents forced to watch their children starve while having nothing left to give them. There is no greater helplessness than watching a child suffer from hunger and being unable to stop it.

No child should ever endure that pain, and no parent should ever be forced to witness it. That is why I have fought so hard in Congress to make sure children have access to food. The fact that dozens of people, led by Aimee Bock, exploited a program meant to eradicate child hunger is a level of depravity that I have a hard time fathoming.

We should all collectively care about the damage that these criminals have done to public faith in programs that save lives and feed children. But instead of addressing the fraud equally and without exception, Trump and his cronies have turned combating fraud into a partisan spectacle defined by a level of racist vitriol that just years ago would have shocked most Republicans, not to mention the American people at large.

Unlike Donald Trump and Republicans who are exploiting these crimes for political convenience, Minnesota leaders worked to hold these fraudsters accountable. The perpetrators are facing substantial prison time for stealing from taxpayers and hungry children. That’s what real accountability looks like, not clicks or grandstanding, but putting criminals behind bars and seeking meaningful restitution for the American people.

The contrast could not be more clear. While Minnesota leaders were prosecuting thieves, Trump was letting them out of prison. He enriches himself, his family profits from crypto deals and world leaders understand that the presidency is now for sale. His underhanded operation racks up billions for his family and friends while working Americans struggle to afford basic necessities.

From the fraudulent scheme behind “Trump University”, which misled thousands of students, to the dissolution of his foundation over what prosecutors described as a “shocking pattern of illegality”, to being found liable in a sweeping civil fraud case for years of inflating his assets – the president’s accusations sound more like confessions.

There has never been a more brazenly corrupt president. And every time scrutiny intensifies, whether over blatant corruption, the Epstein files or abuse of power – Trump defaults to the same strategy: manufacture outrage and spread xenophobic lies. The hypocrisy is outstanding. Republicans who ignore corruption, defend pardons for convicted fraudsters and violent insurrectionists, and stay quiet while Trump enriches himself are now suddenly outraged over fraud cases Democrats themselves investigated and prosecuted years ago.

The reality is that Trump and Republicans are not interested in combating fraud and corruption or having a real conversation to address it. They are interested in ransacking the public good for their own profit. They are interested in clicks, outrage and theatrics in order to deflect from their own corruption. The American people deserve better than a president who uses the pretense of accountability to punish his opponents and reward his allies.

We know who actually enabled fraud and corruption in this country. Donald Trump has spent years proving he has been the biggest fraudster our country has ever seen.

• Ilhan Omar is an American politician serving as the US representative for Minnesota’s fifth congressional district