Republicans summon Tim Walz as fraud scandal explodes: “Where did the money go?”
Republicans in Congress have invited Tim Walz, Minnesota’s Democratic governor and Kamala Harris’ former running mate in the 2024 presidential election, to testify before lawmakers regarding the fraud scandal that has affected his state
Rep. James Comer, R-Kentucky, the chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, scheduled a Feb. 10 hearing featuring the governor. The announcement came several days after influencer Nick Shirley posted a video on social media alleging fraud at multiple Minnesota child care centers.
In a statement, Comer accused Walz of being "asleep at the wheel" while, federal prosecutors say, hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars were siphoned from a child nutrition program. The Justice Department has called it the "largest COVID-19 fraud scheme in the country."
Alleged fraud in Minnesota’s social services programs has drawn increasing ire from the White House and congressional Republicans. On Dec. 30, the federal Department of Health and Human Services said it was pausing child care payments to the state amid the controversy.
Walz, who has faced calls from the GOP to resign, criticized the Trump administration for politicizing what he called a "serious issue" and emphasized the president’s own pardons of people convicted of fraud.
In a statement to USA TODAY, Walz’s office said that although the governor is "happy to work with Congress," the House Oversight Committee "has a track record of holding circus hearings that have nothing to do with the issue at hand." His office did not confirm whether Walz had accepted the invitation to testify.
An initial hearing on the matter is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Jan. 7, according to the House Oversight Committee. Minnesota State Reps. Kristin Robbins, Walter Hudson and Marion Rarick are listed as witnesses. All three are Republicans, and more people could be scheduled to participate.
Earlier in December, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said that since 2018, at least half of the $18 billion paid through Minnesota’s 14 Medicaid waiver programs could also be fraudulent.
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