Minnesota GOP Senate candidate calls on Lt. Gov. to answer for state’s fraud scandal

GOP calls out Lt. Flanagan over fraud

After Gov. Walz announced his decision to drop out of the race, the Minnesota GOP is now demanding answers from Walz’s second in command, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. FOX 9’s Soyoung Kim explains.

(FOX 9) - The Minnesota governor’s race has already been impacted by the fraud scandal and allegations plaguing the state.

Gov. Tim Walz has announced his decision to drop out of the race, and the Minnesota GOP is now demanding answers from Walz’s second in command, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan.

Demanding accountability

The backstory:

The Feeding Our Future case was just the tip of the iceberg for fraud in Minnesota, according to federal prosecutors.

According to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid services, the 14 Medicaid programs at the center of investigations in Minnesota have cost $18 billion since 2018.

Officials said they flagged similar patterns of explosive growth in those programs.

Big picture view:

Prosecutors say at this time, they cannot provide a final figure for the scale or portion of fraud in the state.

However, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said he suspects it could roughly be $9 billion dollars or more.

"I don’t make these generalizations in a hasty way, so when I say a significant amount, I’m talking in the order of half or more. When I look at the claim providers and data, I see more red flags than I see legitimate providers and overwhelmingly so," said Thompson.

What they're saying:

This call for the lieutenant governor and the state’s administration be held accountable came from David Hann on Tuesday.

Hann recently joined the U.S. Senate race, and is a former Minnesota State Senator and former Chair of the Minnesota Republican Party.

"That’s the duty of the Governor and Lt. Gov. The Legislature passes the law. The Governor and his office have the responsibility to administer it effectively, and they didn’t do that," said Hann.

FOX 9 asked Hann what Republican lawmakers could have done to investigate fraud in the state.

"I think there had been hearings on the fraud by a number of committees in the House and Senate. You rely on the Executive Branch to administer the law fairly and responsibly. That’s what they were elected to do," said Hann.

The other side:

Flanagan is a Democratic candidate in the U.S. Senate race to replace Democratic Senator Tina Smith. Smith has announced she will be retiring.

In response, Flanagan sent FOX 9 this statement.

"Anyone who steals from taxpayers should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law – and that’s exactly what’s happening in Minnesota. Governor Walz has taken full accountability and said repeatedly that the buck stops with him and voters are taking him at his word. It’s hard to take Republicans seriously when they talk about accountability while Donald Trump has pardoned 27 of the worst corporate fraudsters and fired the Inspectors General whose job it is to police fraud and corruption in the federal government. They’re going to have to answer to that."

What's next:

The primary election is scheduled for Aug. 11th. Midterm elections will be held on Nov. 3rd.