{"id":1667807,"date":"2026-03-06T23:25:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T04:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/?p=1667807"},"modified":"2026-03-06T23:25:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T04:25:00","slug":"4-takeaways-from-top-minnesota-officials-testimony-on-states-massive-fraud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/4-takeaways-from-top-minnesota-officials-testimony-on-states-massive-fraud\/1667807\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Takeaways From Top Minnesota Officials’ Testimony On State’s Massive Fraud"},"content":{"rendered":"

4 Takeaways From Top Minnesota Officials’ Testimony On State’s Massive Fraud<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Authored by Janice Hisle via The Epoch Times<\/a> (emphasis ours),<\/em><\/p>\n

Two of Minnesota\u2019s top officials, Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison, testified before Congress for more than four hours on March 4 about their state\u2019s multibillion-dollar fraud controversies.<\/strong><\/p>\n

(L-R) Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Rev. Mariah Tollgaard, are sworn in ahead of their testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 4, 2026. Madalina Kilroy\/The Epoch Times<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

During the latest hearing on Capitol Hill, Republicans tried to pin down when the two Democratic leaders were alerted to the fraud<\/strong>, why payments continued afterward, and what role politics may have played.<\/p>\n

Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) summed up the scandal this way: \u201cWhile whistleblowers were silenced, fraudsters got rich<\/strong>.\u201d Comer chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which has now held two hearings on Minnesota fraud cases this year.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udea8 JUST IN: House Oversight Chair James Comer affirms whistleblowers testified UNDER OATH that they spent YEARS warning Tim Walz and Keith Ellison about rampant fraud<\/p>\n

IT\u2019S TIME FOR WALZ AND ELLISON TO BE JAILED.<\/p>\n

US taxpayers are SICK AND TIRED of politicians stealing from them pic.twitter.com\/n6K2lwalBi<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Javier Salazar (@ded_fx) March 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Although Democrat members of the committee agreed with Republicans\u2019 demand to hold fraudsters accountable, some Democrats pivoted away from the issue of fraud. They said the committee ought to instead focus on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions in Minnesota, where confrontations twice turned deadly in January.<\/p>\n

Here are four takeaways.<\/p>\n

Payments \u2018Kept Flowing\u2019 After Fraud Alarms<\/h2>\n

Walz has said that his administration acted quickly, but Comer said that claim \u201cdoes not hold up to the facts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even after fraud was \u201cknown, documented, and repeatedly brought to the attention of state leadership,\u201d state employees \u201ckept payments flowing,\u201d Comer said.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said the committee\u2019s investigation found that state agency leaders directly notified Walz\u2019s chief of staff by May 2020 about concerns regarding Feeding Our Future, a nonprofit organization that was paid to provide meals to children.<\/p>\n

Its payments skyrocketed from $307,000 in 2018, a year before Walz took office, to nearly $200 million by 2021, Donalds said\u2014despite the fraud alarms.<\/p>\n

Authorities say the organization stole nearly $300 million; dozens of people, mostly Somalis, have faced related federal charges since 2022.<\/p>\n

Several Republicans noted that Somalis overwhelmingly vote for Democrats and accused Democrats in Minnesota of turning a blind eye to retain that political support. Walz denied that accusation.300<\/p>\n

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) confronted Walz for publicly stating that payments to Feeding Our Future restarted under a court order.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ramsey County District Court Judge John H. Guthmann said he never issued any such order, according to a 2022 statement<\/a> from the judge.<\/p>\n

Jordan asked Walz, \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell the truth?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

The governor responded, \u201cThe agency believed that the court had required them to make those payments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tim Walz was exposed for resuming taxpayer payments to Somali fraudsters at Feeding Our Future and lying about it. During questioning, Rep. Jim Jordan challenged Walz on why he restarted the payments despite the court never ordering it, forcing Walz to deflect and claim he was\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/KsOUv5tycc<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Americaforever (@onetexgal9) March 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Republicans also cited significant Walz-era increases in funding for other programs in which fraud was uncovered, related to autism therapy, child care, and a housing-affordability program.<\/p>\n

Walz said he was aware of systemic fraud allegations before he took office and that he took steps to address them.<\/p>\n

However, he said that Minnesota is \u201cnot going to shut down programs\u201d that are otherwise worth it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Repeatedly, the governor denounced fraud, saying, \u201cOne dollar is too much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whistleblower Retaliation Alleged and Denied<\/h2>\n

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) told Walz, \u201cAlmost 30 whistleblowers accused you and your administration of retaliation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walz responded: \u201cI can tell you it didn\u2019t happen. … There\u2019s a zero tolerance for whistleblower retaliation in Minnesota.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas) pointed to the case of a state employee\u2014a lifelong Democrat\u2014who \u201cwas called \u2018racist\u2019 and her work responsibilities were diminished\u201d after she blew the whistle on fraud. Many whistleblowers have reported being called \u201cracist\u201d or \u201cIslamophobic\u201d for pointing out fraud allegations against Somalis, who are predominantly black Muslims.<\/p>\n

In response, Walz said that Minnesota offers \u201cvery strong whistleblower protections.\u201d He also said it is illegal to retaliate against whistleblowers or intimidate them.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gill replied, \u201cYour administration has treated whistleblowers like absolute dirt, and that\u2019s a big reason why we\u2019ve seen so much of our hard-earned tax dollars defrauded.\u201d<\/p>\n

Burchett also named some specific organizations that were never prosecuted.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery dad-gum one of you all ought to step down,\u201d Burchett said.<\/p>\n

Other Republicans also called for resignations from Walz and Ellison.<\/p>\n

\u2018Compassion Over Compliance\u2019<\/h2>\n

Rep. William Timmons (R-S.C.) raised concerns about former and current Minnesota welfare agency employees\u2019 statements that they were told to emphasize \u201ccompassion over compliance\u201d when dealing with recipients of government aid.<\/p>\n

Documents back up statements showing that employees were told that they should behave based on a \u201cmindset\u201d of 70 percent compassion, 30 percent compliance, Timmons said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter acknowledging how widespread and pervasive fraud is in Minnesota, how should your state employees prioritize program compliance? What is your message to people now relative to this compassion\u2013compliance ratio?<\/strong>\u201d Timmons asked.<\/p>\n

Walz said he agreed with Timmons.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not an either-or, and it\u2019s not a percentage,\u201d the governor said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not going to stop these programs … [but] we need to have fraud prevention and program integrity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walz, Ellison Defend Record<\/h2>\n

Walz, in a written statement, said, \u201cIn Minnesota, if you defraud public programs, if you steal taxpayer money, we will find you, we will prosecute you, we will convict you, and we will throw you in jail.\u201d<\/p>\n

He acknowledged that the governor has an important role in fighting fraud and that \u201cthe buck ultimately stops\u201d with him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do not shy away from that responsibility, and I am prepared\u2014as I have always been\u2014to have a serious conversation with our federal partners about how to ensure fraudsters cannot take advantage of Minnesota taxpayers,<\/strong>\u201d Walz wrote.<\/p>\n

Tim Walz is getting FLUSTERED, PANICKING after he was exposed lying about covering up for Somali fraud<\/p>\n

WALZ: “Our Medicare error late is lower than your rate!!”<\/p>\n

JAMES COMER: “You have been defrauded! You have not been good stewards of the taxpayer dollars. And the Democrat\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/NkzpqRbYPz<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Roy Rogue (@rogue185263) March 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Walz also told Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) that he would like to hear specifics on how Wisconsin tackled its \u201cimproper payments\u201d problem under former Gov. Scott Walker, also a Republican.<\/p>\n

During the hearing, Walz and other Democrats alleged that President Donald Trump and his Republican administration have targeted Minnesota fraud and immigration enforcement for political reasons.<\/p>\n

Republicans said immigration is intertwined with many other problems, including election fraud and welfare-program fraud.<\/p>\n

Ellison testified that his office can prosecute only Medicaid fraud on its own; federal prosecutors are responsible for other types of fraud cases.<\/p>\n

In his written statement, he said his office has \u201cworked tirelessly to hold fraudsters accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n

He touted winning 300 Medicaid-fraud convictions and recovering $80 million in judgments and restitution. His office also has \u201cdissolved 17 sham non-profits involved in federal child nutrition fraud\u201d since 2019, Ellison wrote.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tyler Durden<\/a><\/span>
\nFri, 03\/06\/2026 – 18:25<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200bhttps:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/political\/4-takeaways-top-minnesota-officials-testimony-states-massive-fraud<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

4 Takeaways From Top Minnesota Officials’ Testimony On State’s Massive Fraud Authored by Janice Hisle via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Two of Minnesota\u2019s top…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1667808,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1667807","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1667807","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1667807"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1667807\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1667834,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1667807\/revisions\/1667834"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1667808"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1667807"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1667807"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1667807"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}