A Senate Republican hopeful eyeing Minnesota’s open seat accused Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison of turning a blind eye to a multibillion-dollar fraud scandal in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
Michele Tafoya, 61, is running to replace retiring Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., in a crowded race where Republicans have heavily targeted Walz and Ellison over a nearly $10 billion daycare, food aid and health clinic fraud scheme that unfolded under their noses.
This widespread theft could flip a Senate seat red in Minnesota for the first time since 2008, Tafoya insisted in an interview with Fox News Digital, adding that people in her state are “angry.”
“Fraud is certainly at the forefront” of this election, she said.
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“I think that Tim Walz and Keith Ellison are both to blame for this fraud,” Tafoya alleged. “Look, they’re at the top. And as one very revered former United States senator told me, that amount of money cannot change hands without people knowing.”
“So people knew this was going on,” the former sports broadcaster added, demanding someone be held accountable for the widespread fraud.
Brian Evans, a spokesperson for Ellison, told Fox News Digital that the attorney general’s office has gone after fraud in the state, specifically with the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, which has “secured over 340 convictions and regularly ranks as one of the most efficient team of fraud fighters in the nation.”
“Attorney General Ellison is currently leading the charge to pass a bipartisan bill to give his fraud control unit more resources and authority to go after fraudsters and protect our tax dollars,” Evans said. “He has a strong record of fighting fraud and holding fraudsters accountable.”
Both Walz and Ellison defended their actions to address fraud in their state during a congressional hearing. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., found ahead of the hearing that Walz and Ellison were aware of fraud in the state but “repeatedly failed to act.”
And Tafoya claimed they “laughed it off” during their appearance before the House Oversight Committee in March.
“People knew this was going on. We have seen it with the Quality ‘Learing’ Center,” Tafoya said. “We know that there have been so many mistakes made. And when you are the governor, the buck stops with you.”
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Tafoya, a former sports reporter seeking elected office for the first time, is aiming to flip the seat red and said Minnesotans are “ready for a change.”
“They are so fed up and disillusioned,” she said.
When asked about a noncitizen recently charged with committing voter fraud and perjury in Minnesota, Tafoya tied that issue to the multibillion-dollar fraud scandal and said, “Walz and company want us to believe there’s zero voter fraud.”
“Where there’s smoke, there’s fire,” Tafoya said. “I’m certain that’s not the only example. And for them to say that we had perfect elections, when they have just proven that they are willing to lie through their teeth about where our money is going, is laughable.”
But Tafoya is not running against Walz or Ellison and, despite having the most campaign coffers among her cohorts, she must first survive a crowded primary to win the Republican nomination. Only then will she advance to the general election in November against Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., or Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, both of whom she claims are trying to “out-left” each other.
Specifically, Tafoya pointed to Flanagan, saying: “She got dressed in a hijab and told Minnesotans, ‘Somalis built Minnesota.’ That was so offensive to everyone in the state.”
“So that gives you an example of how much of a leftist she is.”
While Tafoya has the backing of Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., who chairs the Senate GOP’s campaign arm, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, former President Donald Trump has yet to issue a coveted endorsement that could make or break her campaign.
Tafoya said it is ultimately Trump’s decision whether and when to endorse a candidate in the race.
“I’m going to let him speak for himself on any endorsement,” Tafoya said. “We would happily take it. But right now, we are the candidate that has raised the most money by far in the Republican senatorial race in Minnesota, and we think that speaks very highly of our chances.”
She has also outpaced her Republican opponents, raising just over $2 million between January and March of this year, with just under $1.9 million on hand, according to filings with the Federal Election Commission. Tafoya also holds a cash advantage over Flanagan, who has raised $1.4 million and still has $1.1 million on hand.
Both are surpassed by Craig, who has brought in $2.5 million and has a whopping $4.9 million on hand.
Fox News Digital reached out for comment from Walz but did not immediately hear back.
