AG Ellison on fraud, Feeding our Future and why he deserves another term

(FOX 9) - As Minnesota’s Attorney General since 2018, Keith Ellison has overseen several high-profile events that have affected the state – including suing e-cigarette maker Juul in 2019 and 2023 over deceptive marketing (winning a multi-million dollar settlement on behalf of residents), the onset of a global pandemic and the Feeding our Future fraud that followed, and ongoing efforts to crackdown on fraud in state-run programs.

Ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections, during which he faces off against opposing candidate Ron Schutz, Ellison spoke with FOX 9’s Rob Olson to discuss why he feels he has earned the trust of Minnesotans to protect their rights, and what he hopes to accomplish if he's elected to another term during an appearance on All Day’s "Conversation with Candidates" series.

Ellison on accomplishments

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During his tenure, Ellison notes that his office has successfully prosecuted, and won, several lawsuits that have positively made a difference in the lives of Minnesotans.

"We have helped Minnesotans afford their lives. I sued the insulin cartel and was able to reduce the price of insulin for some people who were paying as much as $1,300 a month, down to capping it at $35 a month for everybody. We were able to start an anti-wage theft division which protects wages, and returned millions of dollars to Minnesotans. We sued Juul and the vaping companies that were marketing to our children and we won," Ellison said on Friday en route to a campaign event in southern Minnesota. "So, we've done a lot. We've helped people afford their lives, then live with dignity, safety, and respect … Quite honestly, the fight for helping Minnesotans has never been more urgent. And we're gonna continue on that front, pushing down people's generic drug prices, pushing down peoples' healthcare costs, standing up for people in the market in all kind of ways, in all kinds of methods."

Ellison on fraud

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In the wake of the nation’s largest uncovered pandemic-era fraud scheme under the Feeding our Future program, Minnesotans saw upwards of $250 million taken from program funds that were meant to feed children in need.

When asked, Ellison spoke about how he plans to combat fraud in all years as a focal point if elected to another term.

"We have prosecuted over 358 people and convicted them of Medicaid fraud. We have worked with the state legislature to increase the number of our team from 32 to about 50. And we have worked with a legislature to lengthen sentences for people who steal money from public programs like Medicaid," Ellison said. "Your listeners should know that when we were working with the legislature to increase sentences for fraudsters and increase our team so we can be more effective, he [Schutz] actually asked the legislature not to vote for our bill. He literally opposed our anti-fraud bill. And so, I don't know if he's against fraud, but he's against me, I can tell you that."

Ellison on Feeding our Future

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In a campaign ad challenging Ellison, Schutz has aired a recording of a conversation that Ellison had with conspirators later indicted as part of the $250 million pandemic fraud, during which he offered assistance with potential "red tape" in state funding.

During his interview, Ellison clarified his position on what can be heard on the recording.

"So, first of all, it's not unusual for me to meet Minnesotans as often as I can. This group of Minnesotans were all liars, cheaters, and scammers. They were representing themselves as legitimate business people who had some challenges with red tape. And so, I said, look, submit to me what your complaints are. We'll see what we can do to help. I do this all the time if a group of Minnesotans, whether they be farmers, small business people, teachers, whoever is having a problem. As the AG, I'm going to try to help them solve the problem," Ellison said. "What I found out and what became very clear is that these people were liars and thieves and cheaters and what we ended up doing is helping the federal government criminally prosecute many of them, over 57 of them. Critical evidence our office helped pull together that contributed to those convictions," Ellison said. "And of course, this was federal money, so it's entirely appropriate for the federal government to prosecute them, but they did it with evidence that we helped them to get. So yeah, it's true some liars, falsely represented who they were. That particular ad is deeply misleading, I think. But I can say this, I don't have any misleading ads about Ron. Every time run tape of what he said, he really did say that. It's not misleading at all. And I think Minnesotans know that I've always operated with ethics, integrity and honor as I represented them as their Minnesota Attorney General."

What's next:

Minnesota’s general election is held on Nov. 3, and you can find up-to-date coverage before, after and during here.