WASHINGTON — Rep. Jim Jordan grilled Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Wednesday for allegedly lying about why his administration resumed funding to the $250 million Feeding Our Future scam.
Jordan (R-Ohio) argued that Walz allowed the fraud to continue because he was afraid of upsetting Somali-American voters and decided instead to falsely claim a court required the funds to flow to the faux charity in April 2021 after a brief pause.
Jordan quoted from a rare statement from Minnesota’s court system contradicting Walz, who abandoned his re-election campaign due to the fraud scandal involving social services.
“March 30, 2021, the payments are stopped, and over a month later, the payments are restarted. Why didn’t you tell the truth about why you restarted the payments?” Jordan asked Walz at a House Oversight Committee hearing.
“Why didn’t tell the truth about why you restarted the payments? Payment stopped because there were concerns … then they restarted the month later. What was the reason for restarting the payments?”
Walz replied, “My understanding was the agency believed that the court had required them to make those payments.”
“The court… issued a statement saying you were wrong,” Jordan retorted.
The Republican read from the court’s 2022 statement titled “correcting media reports and statements by Governor Tim Walz concerning orders issued by the court.”
Jordan pressed Walz: “So I want to know, why didn’t you tell the truth?”
“Congressman, the attorneys at the Department of Education interpreted that differently,” Walz insisted.
Federal prosecutors have indicted 79 people since 2022 in connection to the fraud involving emergency nutrition funds.
“As governor, I’ve taken accountability for this. I’m not going to run again. I need to spend the time fixing this. This does undermine trust in government. Do I wish there were things that could happen earlier? Yes, but in this job ‘wish’ didn’t do it,” Walz said.
“I’m certainly not proud this happened. I certainly understand it happened on my watch, whether it predated me or not, I’m here.”
Walz said that he hoped lawmakers would make “some legal changes we need around Medicaid eligibility issues” that “actually might get at this.”
The Trump administration announced last month that $259.5 million in Medicaid funds for Minnesota won’t be reimbursed due to fraud concerns — citing evidence of phony charges for services such as autism care.
The Justice Department has since September indicted seven alleged fraudsters in Minnesota who allegedly recruited members of the Somali immigrant community to enroll their kids in fake autism services, raking in $14 million. One defendant has pleaded guilty.
‘You should go to jail’
Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) told Minnesota Democratic Attorney General Keith Ellison on Wednesday that “you should go to jail” if it’s proven that he corruptly covered up fraud in his state.
Unlike Walz, Ellison didn’t give a mea culpa and insisted that his office actually has been a top-notch outfit helping the feds bust up fraud.
“Mr. Ellison, my concern is that you actively obstructed this investigation in exchange for campaign donations and campaign donations, a quid pro poll. If these concerns are proven to be true, you should be disbarred and you should go to jail,” the House majority whip said.
Emmer suggested that Ellison misrepresented his role in busting the $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud ring.
“There’s a 54-minute audio tape of your meeting with these criminals in December of 2021 and during your meeting, they complain to you about increased scrutiny of their nonprofits, and you told them, ‘Of course I’m here to help.’ It’s on the internet,” Emmer said.
Part of that video was played during the hearing, showing Ellison saying that it was unfair for funding to be shut off over potentially minor issues.
“Just weeks after your December 2021 meeting, the FBI executed search warrants that you never would have requested in the Feeding Our Future fraud investigation,” Emmer went on.
“Now let’s fast-forward to September 2022 — 10 months after you met with the Somali fraudsters. Your office issued a press release stating, ‘Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and his office have been deeply involved for two years in holding Feeding Our Future accountable,’” Emmer exclaimed.
“So, according to your office, sir, you have been deeply involved in the Feeding Our Future case since September of 2020. That actually sounds like you are saying that at the time of your infamous meeting with the Somali fraudsters, you were already aware of the allegations of fraud.”
Ellison defended his record.
“Fraud in government programs is reprehensible. It takes food from tables of the hungry. It takes shelter from those without it. I’ve worked every day as attorney general to hold fraudsters accountable and I’m proud of my record,” he said.
“We’ve won 300 Medicaid fraud convictions, more than any other state of similar size, and recovered over $80 million for Minnesota taxpayers. We’ve returned tens of millions of dollars to victims of consumer fraud in Minnesota since 2019 and our charities division has resolved over 50 investigations and dissolved 17 sham nonprofits.”
Ellison said that “over the past six years, my Medicaid fraud control unit is ranked fifth in the nation in fraud convictions.”
