Dem VP nominee Walz subpoenaed by Congress in COVID relief scandal: Allegations that Walz 'and other executive officers were involved'

ST. PAUL, MN - The U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee under Chairwoman Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) has issued a subpoena requiring that Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota release records to the committee related to the $250 Million COVID-19 relief fraud scandal that rocked his administration.

The massive fraud operation targeting "the Minnesota Department of Education’s (MDE) administration of federal child nutrition programs (FCNP)," and allegedly involving the Minneapolis-based nonprofit, Feeding Our Future, was first reported by NBC News.

According to The New York Post, at least 70 people were charged in the early stages of the investigation for being involved in the "depraved and brazen" scheme from April 2020 to January 2022 as one prosecutor described. That January the FBI would break the operation's back in a series of raids against the fraudulent non-profit. 

In a letter to Walz from Chairwoman Foxx, the committee makes it quite clear that the proverbial buck stops with Walz, and that the House is seeking accountability.

They wrote, "As the chief executive and the highest ranking official in the state of Minnesota, you are responsible for the MDE and its administration of FCNPs. Article V Section 3 of the Constitution of the State of Minnesota which lays out the powers and duties of the governor, states in part that the governor 'may require the opinion in writing of the principal officer in each of the executive departments upon any subject relating to his duties,' and 'he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.'"

The letter continued, laying out potentially serious allegations against Walz, stating, "Statements in the press by you and your representatives indicate that you and other executive officers were involved, or had knowledge of, MDE’s administration of the FCNP and responsibilities and actions regarding the massive fraud.

"When you were asked about your decision of not holding agencies accountable and if MDE employees would be disciplined, you replied, 'This wasn’t malfeasance.' You also stated, 'There’s not a single state employee that was implicated in doing anything that was illegal. They simply didn’t do as much due diligence as they should’ve.'"

As noted by the post, five of the seventy people charged have been convicted in what reports have termed the "largest COVID-19 fraud scheme in the nation."

A June audit by the Minnesota legislature stated the Minnesota Dept. of Education “failed to act on warning signs known to the department prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and prior to the start of the alleged fraud,” and in so doing “created opportunities for fraud,” through "inadequate oversight."