James Comer to accuse Tim Walz of being ‘asleep at the wheel’ during bombshell fraud hearing

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., will accuse top Minnesota government officials of being “asleep at the wheel” at the start of his panel’s high-profile hearing into fraud allegations.

In Comer’s opening statement, obtained by Fox News Digital, he is expected to question whether “Governor Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison and Minnesota Democratic leadership” were negligent or “complicit” in the growing scandal.

“Minnesota’s social services, funded by you, the American taxpayer, are being defrauded. The most vulnerable suffer as a result,” Comer will say, according to his prepared remarks.

“The scammers, many from Minnesota’s Somali community, stole money from programs aimed at feeding needy children, providing services to autistic children, housing low-income and disabled Americans, and providing health care to vulnerable Medicaid recipients.”

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Federal prosecutors in Minnesota indict multiple people Stole more than $240 million From the Federal Child Nutrition Program through a Minnesota-based nonprofit Feeding Our Future.

But the investigation has since expanded to include investigating multiple government-run programs for potential fraud. Child care providers that receive government funding are also under scrutiny, particularly in the Somali community.

US lawyers claim billions more could fall victim to fraud in the state; Walz pushed back, accusing Republicans of politicizing the scandal.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on January 5, 2026 in St. He held a news conference at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul. (Kerem Yücel/Minnesota Public Radio via AP)

“Scammers like these take millions to enrich themselves by offering nothing, exaggerating or blatantly imitating services. How many children have gone hungry because scammers stole money intended to provide them with food?” The one who comes will tell.

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“How many autistic children were denied services because scammers sent that money overseas? How many low-income seniors, people with disabilities or mental illness were denied access to housing because scammers drained resources and pocketed the money for themselves?”

In his statement, Comer will argue that what has been revealed so far is “just the tip of the iceberg.”

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, a Republican from Minnesota, during a television interview at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Sept. 30, 2025. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The hearing, which begins at 10 a.m. ET on Wednesday, will include testimony from three Republicans in the state legislature.

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Comer summoned Walz and Ellison for a follow-up hearing on February 10, but it is not yet clear whether they will attend.

Fox News Digital was told House Majority Speaker Tom Emmer, R-Minn., will also attend Wednesday’s hearing. Emmer is a longtime critic of the Walz administration and represents a district where two-thirds of the trial’s GOP witnesses live.