Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison reacted sharply when questioned about his response to a fraud scandal in the state, following Vice President JD Vance’s warning that he could refer the matter to the Justice Department. Ellison also disputed a frequently repeated $8 billion estimate, saying it is promoted by people “aligned with the Trump Administration.”
“That is a false number,” Ellison said. “The fact is, is that fraud is always wrong.”
“Why don’t you give me a break, man?” he added.
His remarks came after Vance, who leads the Trump administration’s newly created anti-fraud task force, threatened to urge the Justice Department to investigate what Ellison may have known about the alleged widespread fraud operation in Minnesota.
Asked about the widely circulated claim that fraud in Minnesota had climbed to roughly $8 billion, Ellison appeared increasingly irritated and moved to cut off the interview, arguing that the figure is associated with a specific political camp.
“If you ask the newspapers for a forensic accounting, the number you mentioned is tightly identified with people of a very unique political persuasion aligned with the Trump administration,” Ellison told Fox News Digital.
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“So, I’m done talking to you. Bye-bye,” he said while walking away.
After the reporter said he was trying to clarify the figure and was referring to multiple reports, Ellison continued to challenge what he suggested were political biases behind the line of questioning.
“It’s wrong though. And if you’re a real reporter, you should know that,” he said, pointing to the Fox News Digital reporter.
The estimate has been widely cited by both the House Oversight Committee and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson, who have argued that potentially billions of dollars were lost to fraud in Minnesota’s public assistance programs.
Thompson said investigators have reason to believe that roughly half of the $18 billion paid through 14 Medicaid programs since 2018 could have been part of a major fraud scheme.
The scandal drew national attention through congressional investigations and a series of high-profile fraud cases involving federally funded nutrition, education and Medicaid-related programs. Prosecutors have alleged that multiple nonprofit organizations diverted millions of taxpayer dollars through fraudulent schemes, many of which expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Several of the most prominent cases, including the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme, were connected to Minnesota’s Somali community.
House Oversight Committee investigators have also argued that Ellison was aware of fraud concerns years before the scandal surfaced, citing interviews with education, human services and executive-office officials.
