Demuth Vows to Fire Every State Commissioner as Klobuchar Says Walz ‘Should Have Caught the Fraud’
Republican Lisa Demuth pledged to fire every Minnesota state commissioner on her first day as governor, as fraud in state programs dominated her final debate with Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
The two met Wednesday night in Rochester, FOX 9 reported, in what is expected to be their last debate before the Nov. 3 election to replace Gov. Tim Walz, who is not seeking another term.
“Fraud unchecked here in the state of Minnesota has gone far too long, and it has finally come to the surface,” Demuth, the speaker of the Minnesota House, said, according to Fox News.
“The thing that I will do on day one is I am going to be firing all commissioners, choosing new commissioners that are expert in their field,” she said. “We have to change the culture of fraud.”
Klobuchar called the pledge “absurd,” Fox News reported, and pointed to her own record. “As a former prosecutor, I’m going to send those fraudsters to jail,” she said, according to KEYC.
She also put distance between herself and the outgoing governor. “Tim Walz should have caught the fraud earlier, and he should have done more,” Klobuchar said. “He said it himself.”
Klobuchar said that when the fraud came to light, she called then-U.S. Attorney Andy Luger to ask what he needed. “He said, I need more prosecutors,” she said, adding that she went to the top of the Justice Department and got them.
Demuth was unconvinced. “Even if she made a phone call on fraud, where was she? There was no press release,” she said. “She was silent on fraud until Tim Walz asked her to run for governor.”
Demuth also argued that Klobuchar has not named specific policies on which she would break with Walz, whom Klobuchar has called an “incredible governor,” Fox News reported.
Klobuchar cast Demuth as too close to President Trump. “We don’t need a rubber stamp of Donald Trump in the governor’s office,” she said.
Both candidates have built campaigns around the fraud scandals that unfolded under Walz. The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that Demuth would also fire deputy commissioners and hire forensic accountants to investigate whistleblower tips.
Demuth has also proposed barring social service recipients from sending money to family and friends overseas, according to the Star Tribune. Klobuchar has promised a “top-to-bottom” audit of state government and tougher fraud penalties.
Beyond fraud, the candidates sparred over health care, child care, housing and gang violence. Demuth said she is the only candidate endorsed by law enforcement and proposed a joint state, local and federal gang task force, FOX 9 reported.
Klobuchar said she is “100% committed” to working with the private sector to build 100,000 new housing units by the end of her term. Demuth said she supports ending the tax on Social Security.
Klobuchar leads in recent polling. A KSTP/SurveyUSA poll released last week showed her 7 points ahead of Demuth, though Demuth was gaining among moderates.
Republicans have not won a statewide race in Minnesota since 2006. Either way, the state will elect its first female governor, and a Demuth win would make her its first Black governor, Fox News noted.
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