Tim Walz Ties Exit to Minnesota Fraud, Says $1 Was Too Much
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Oct 18
Tim Walz Ties Exit to Minnesota Fraud, Says $1 Was Too Much
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Oct 18
Summary
Tim Walz said he chose not to seek a third term partly because Minnesota’s fraud scandal would be used to attack other Democrats and erode trust in government.
On a Friday podcast, Walz said he lacked authority to halt suspect payments on his own and needed lawmakers to grant that power, but still conceded his administration should have closed "back doors" sooner.
Walz argued the scandal became a political "gift" to Republicans and accused the Trump administration of spotlighting Minnesota while saying other states have had more fraud.
Critics pushed back immediately: former House Judiciary Democratic counsels Julian Epstein and Theo Wold said Walz had authority to act and accused state leaders of ignoring fraud for years.