Some Democrats signal Walz should testify on fraud scandal, others avoid responsibility
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Amid backlash over the large-scale Minnesota Medicaid fraud scandal that occurred under Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, some Democrats are dodging responsibility, but others have said Walz should be held accountable.
“I think any case of fraud should be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent, and therefore the federal government should play an oversight role over federal dollars,” Rep. Johnny Olszewski, Democrat of Maryland, told Fox News Digital. “States, however, have an obligation to ensure that they administer these programs. Any cases must be investigated. If fraud occurs, people must be prosecuted for that fraud.”
Asked if he thought Walz should be forced to testify for letting so much money go to waste through fraud on his watch, Olszewski said “anyone” involved in large-scale fraud “should stand before Congress and tell us what happened.”
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Democratic Congressman Johnny Olszewski suggested that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz should testify to Congress about what happened with Minnesota’s fraud scandal involving Medicaid dollars. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Olszewski was not the only Democrat heard by Fox News Digital to suggest Walz should face the music, but others dodged the question and some pointed the finger at President Donald Trump and Republicans.
“It’s not a partisan issue. I just wish we could focus on actually looking at the facts and avoid having one side try to address waste, fraud and abuse, and the other side not,” said Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., when asked if anything needed to be done to prevent such large-scale fraud — as was seen in Minnesota — from happening in the first place.
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“There’s still a problem with fraud. That’s why the Department of Justice had a huge civil fraud division that did a great job, and that’s why we [Inspector Generals] and so on throughout the federal government. Eliminating these people and firing this group of people was one of the worst things the Trump administration could do if it was serious about fighting waste, fraud and abuse,” said Rep. Glenn Ivey, Democrat of Maryland.
Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., speaks during a news conference with Free DC and City Council members “to oppose Donald Trump’s illegal push for federal law enforcement in Washington, D.C.,” outside the U.S. Capitol, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
“Oh, I don’t know if you need the governor to do it. Certainly someone from Minnesota who has the best idea of what went wrong should do it,” Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., told Fox News Digital about whether Walz should testify.
At a news conference Thursday, federal authorities in Minnesota announced new charges in the fraud scandal that has made national headlines and discussed the scale of the crisis, saying it goes beyond what has been previously reported.
Gov. Tim Walz, Democrat of Minnesota, is at the center of a growing scandal as federal prosecutors continue to unravel one of the nation’s largest fraud cases in the COVID era. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
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Minnesota Democratic lawmakers received more than $50,000 in campaign donations from fraudsters who embezzled taxpayer money meant to feed children, according to a report.
Andrew Mark Miller of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
