7 hours Ago By Esme Murphy
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison faced members of the House Fraud Committee on Monday who sought questions about a 2021 meeting he had with business owners later convicted in the Feeding Our Future fraud case . In a secretly recorded conversation, the future defendants are heard complaining about state agencies and discussing possible campaign contributions. The conversation took place one month before the first search warrant was filed, and nine months before any indictments.
"I find it difficult to believe that you didn't have some suspicion about who these people were," said Rep. Walter Hudson, R-Albertville. Ellison told the committee he had no idea that his own staff was investigating Feeding Our Future at the time of the meeting.
"I mean, it's not just how it works, to believe that I know every single thing that happened in every single file in my office," Ellison said. "What did I do for these people? Nothing. I investigated after the conversation.
And then what did we do? We cooperated to help get these people found accountable." After the meeting, Republican Chair Kristin Robbins said she still has questions about Ellison. "The complete denial he didn't know anything until the search warrant came out the next month I think is surprising," Robbins said.
DFL Vice Chair Rep. Dave Pinto, himself a prosecutor, says he is satisfied. "He wasn't familiar with this, he's working on many other things.
Right afterwards, he got himself familiar and identified these folks as fraudsters," Pinto said. The fraud committee is part of an overall effort by the legislature, the governor's office and the attorney general's office to crack down on fraud. Among the changes being considered this session are tougher enforcement against kickbacks, and requiring that state agencies cut off funding if they suspect wrongdoing.
Another reform being proposed at the Capitol is making training mandatory for state employees who supervise grant projects. Esme Murphy, a reporter and Sunday morning anchor for WCCO-TV, has been a member of the WCCO-TV staff since December 1990. She is also a weekend talk show host on WCCO Radio.
Born and raised in New York City, Esme ventured into reporting after graduating from Harvard University..
