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Comer, House Oversight demand answers in Minnesota fraud hearing, call on Walz to testify
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Republicans on the House Oversight Committee are escalating their investigation into Minnesota’s sweeping fraud schemes, setting a hearing next week and demanding answers from Gov. Tim Walz’s administration over what they say were glaring failures of oversight.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., announced lawmakers would hold a hearing on Wednesday, Jan. 7, evaluating the fraud scandal, its scale and whether the state’s leadership could have done something to prevent exploitation from happening in the first place.
«Congress has a duty to conduct rigorous oversight of this heist and enact stronger safeguards to prevent fraud in taxpayer-funded programs, as well as strong sanctions to hold offenders accountable,» Comer said in a statement on Wednesday morning.
MINNESOTA’S NEW MEDICAID FRAUD PREVENTION FIX WON’T MAKE ‘ANY DIFFERENCE,’ FORMER FBI AGENT SAYS
Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chairman of the House Oversight Committee, pictured alongside Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, right. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images; Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
While the committee will also hear testimony from lawmakers in Minnesota, Republican lawmakers believe it is the Walz administration that holds the answers on how the problem got so large.
«Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison have either been asleep at the wheel or complicit in a massive fraud involving taxpayer dollars in Minnesota’s social services programs. American taxpayers demand and deserve accountability for the theft of their hard-earned money,» Comer said.
The Committee will hear from Reps. Kristin Robbins, Walter Hudson and Marion Rarick — all Republican members of the Minnesota House of Representatives.
It’s unclear if Walz or Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison will accept the invitation.
SHIRLEY ASSOCIATE IN VIRAL VIDEO SAYS HE FILED CRIMINAL COMPLAINT AGAINST WALZ OVER DAYCARE FRAUD ALLEGATIONS
Democratic vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, speaks at a get-out-the-vote rally on Oct. 22, 2024 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
The hearing is a part of the committee’s own investigation into the Minnesota fraud, a separate effort from ongoing FBI probes.
The Oversight Committee’s announcement comes as new revelations about fraud in Minnesota reveal that the state could have lost as much as $9 billion through abuse of its government assistance programs.
In recent months, investigators have unearthed sweeping fraud schemes masquerading as daycare centers, medical providers, food assistance programs and more. By fabricating services or inflating the number of people they claimed to serve, the schemes allegedly siphoned billions in government funds.
«In addition to conducting transcribed interviews with Minnesota state officials, the House Oversight Committee will hold hearings on fraud in Minnesota’s social services programs to expose failures, identify solutions, and deliver accountability,» Comer said.
Given their size and frequency, lawmakers have raised questions about how a state’s lack of awareness of its own programs could have been so easily abused.
Comer believes the lawmakers who have agreed to testify before the committee will provide insight into the visibility of the fraud rings and whether Walz was made aware of their scale ahead of shocking reporting that made Minnesota’s shortcomings a matter of national attention.
MINNESOTA FRAUD COMMITTEE CHAIR CLAIMS WALZ ‘TURNED A BLIND EYE’ TO FRAUD WARNINGS FOR YEARS
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said Friday that former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would face contempt of Congress charges if they fail to cooperate with the panel’s Epstein probe. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
«Next week, we will hear from Minnesota state lawmakers who sounded the alarm on this fraud — and whose warnings were ignored by the Walz administration. This misconduct cannot be swept aside, and Congress will not stop until taxpayers get the answers and accountability they deserve,» Comer said.
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The Walz office did not respond to Fox Digital’s request for comment on whether he would attend next week’s hearing.
congress,politics,minnesota fraud exposed
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«¡Callate cerdita!»: 2025, un año difícil para los periodistas, con pocas esperanzas de mejorar
Seguimiento de asesinatos y agresiones a periodistas
periodistas israelíes protestan por el asesinato, a manos del Ejército israelí, de decenas de reporteros palestinos. Foto: EFE
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Fraud engulfs Minnesota as another blue state kicks off New Year with ID for trains — not votes
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While Minnesota grapples with a burgeoning fraud crisis, one blue state that still does not require photo ID to vote will require residents seeking to pay a reduced fare on state-owned transit present one in order to qualify.
Reduced-fare on NJTransit, and mass transit in other states, is often offered to senior citizens, military personnel or the infirm. Meanwhile, officials in Minnesota are grappling with a multifaceted fraud scandal involving subsidies paid to largely Somali-led outfits and interests that are allegedly illegitimate and often appear unverified as well.
However, New Jersey is one of 14 states that does not require the same stringent photo identification to be shown at the polls on election day.
The discrepancy spurred an uproar online as the local outlet Shore News Network drew attention to it in its reporting of the new reduced-fare ID requirement.
RED STATE GOVERNOR TOUTS MEDICAID SAVINGS AS MINNESOTA GRAPPLES WITH WIDESPREAD FRAUD ALLEGATIONS
New Jersey Transit bus 159R drives through Lincoln Harbor in Hoboken. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images)
«Starting January 1, photo ID required for NJ Transit reduced fares but not for voting,» a headline from the Rutherford-based outlet read.
«This change is only for customers who have been using an NJ Transit issued non-photo ID as proof of reduced fare eligibility,» NJ Transit spokesman John Chartier told NJAdvanceMedia.
Current non-photo reduced-fare ID cards will no longer be accepted as of Thursday, according to the agency, which announced that Jerseyans must apply for a new photo ID either in-person or by mail – while providing NJTransit proof of age and/or disability and a recent photo.
COMER WARNS ‘WALLS ARE CAVING IN’ ON TIM WALZ AS MINNESOTA FRAUD PROBE WIDENS
NJ Transit said all non-photo Reduced Fare IDs will become invalid after the new year. Riders must apply for the new, free photo ID card online, by mail, or in person, providing proof of age or disability along with a recent photo, according to Shore News Network.
By contrast, on election day, voters must include their state driver’s license number on their registration form.
Failing to include that number on a registration form would then require identification be presented onsite for first-time voters; which could include a license or a utility bill, bank statement, paycheck or government document – not all of which have a photographic component.
MINNESOTA DEM SENATE CANDIDATE FACES CALL FROM OPPONENT TO APOLOGIZE OVER VIRAL ‘PANDERING’ HIJAB VIDEO
«This is how ridiculous Democrat-run states are,» one X user said. «Beginning January 1st, a photo ID will be required for the Reduced Fair Program, but it is still not required to vote. This is how they keep states blue by cheating.»
The volunteer good-governance organization New Jersey Project also slammed state policies:
«Photo ID needed for NJ Transit discounts but not for voting. Starting January,» the group said.
WALZ SLAMMED IN WAKE OF VIRAL VIDEO THAT RAISES DAYCARE FUNDING QUESTIONS: ‘NEEDS TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE’
«Priorities, Trenton?»
The blog New Jersey News wrote that state officials often claim voter ID «disenfranchises minorities» who cannot get such identification.
«Guess they won’t be riding the train either,» the outlet said.
MINNESOTA’S NEW MEDICAID FRAUD PREVENTION FIX WON’T MAKE ‘ANY DIFFERENCE,’ FORMER FBI AGENT SAYS
The group «Wake Up NJ» also fired back at the new policy, citing the same disparity between arguments against voter-ID and the state’s actions toward reduced-fare straphangers.
«New Jersey expects you to get that reduced fare for New Jersey Transit, but it’s OK [if you don’t] for voting,» they said.
The photo ID rule in-practice will allow a rider who goes a short distance on a state bus – considered a «Zone 1» fare – to pay 85 cents instead of the full $1.85. Commuters going to «Zone 3» – immediate suburbs of New York City – pay $5.30, but would be able to pay $2.40 under the reduced-fare ID policy.
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Longer trips see larger savings as NJTransit’s special limited-stop service on the Garden State Parkway from New York to Toms River and Atlantic City currently costs $57.40 to hit the casinos. Showing a reduced-fare ID card would allow the rider to pay $25.80.
Fox News Digital reached out to the New Jersey Secretary of State’s office, which oversees elections, for comment.
voter fraud concerns,minnesota fraud exposed,voting,travel,new jersey,business regulation
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While the United States presses for negotiations aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, Russia is signaling a parallel strategy — deepening cooperation with U.S. adversaries and portraying itself as resistant to Western pressure.
That posture was on display this week when Iran announced that three of its domestically designed satellites were launched into orbit aboard a Russian rocket.
The launch was broadcast by Iran’s Arabic-language state television channel Al-Alam News Network, which aired footage showing the satellites lifting off from Russian territory. The Associated Press and Reuters reported that the satellites were carried into orbit aboard a Russian rocket launched from eastern Russia, marking the seventh time Iran has conducted a satellite launch with Russian assistance.
IRANIAN PRESIDENT SAYS HIS COUNTRY IS AT ‘TOTAL WAR’ WITH THE US, ISRAEL AND EUROPE: REPORTS
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian shake hands as they meet in Moscow, Russia Jan. 17, 2025. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool via Reuters)
Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said the satellites were «designed and produced by Iranian scientists,» adding that cooperation between Tehran and Moscow continues «despite all the sanctions and threats,» according to Iranian state media cited by Reuters.
Iranian officials claim the satellites are intended for civilian purposes, including environmental monitoring and agriculture, though Western governments have long warned that Iran’s space program could advance technologies applicable to ballistic missile development.
The launch underscored a broader strategic relationship between Moscow that has expanded significantly since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Iran has supplied Russia with drones and other military equipment used on the battlefield, while Russia has provided diplomatic cover, economic cooperation and advanced technical support amid sweeping Western sanctions on both countries.
IRAN REPORTEDLY DEVELOPING CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL MISSILE WARHEADS AS PROTESTS SPREAD OVER COLLAPSING ECONOMY
A Russian warship and an Iranian army speed boat attend a joint naval exercise on Tuesday. (AP/Iranian Army)
The growing Russia-Iran alignment comes as tensions between Tehran and Washington continue to rise. After President Donald Trump recently warned that the United States could strike Iran again if it attempted to rebuild its nuclear program, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian issued a sharp response.
According to the Associated Press, Pezeshkian said any U.S. attack would be met with a «harsh and discouraging» response. Iranian officials framed the warning as defensive, arguing it was meant to deter potential U.S. aggression rather than signal an intention to initiate conflict. Tehran has repeatedly said its nuclear program is peaceful, a claim the United States and its allies dispute.
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Russian army Mi-24 helicopters fly above a warship at the Turali range on the Caspian Sea coast in the Republic of Dagestan in Southern Russia on Sept. 23, 2020 during the «Caucasus-2020» military drills gathering China, Iran, Pakistan and Myanmar troops, along with ex-Soviet Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus. (Dimitar Dilkoff / AFP via Getty Images)
The exchange highlights how Iran and Russia are increasingly positioning themselves as partners pushing back against U.S. pressure, even as Washington attempts to pursue diplomacy on multiple fronts. Russia has portrayed its partnerships with Iran and other sanctioned states as evidence that Western efforts to isolate Moscow have failed, while Iran has used its cooperation with Russia to showcase technological resilience under sanctions.
iran,russia,vladimir putin,donald trump,air and space
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