LISTEN: GOP State Sen. Paul Utke of Park Rapids’ conversation with The Flag’s Steve Hallstrom
MINNESOTA – In an interview on “The Steve Hallstrom Show” on The Flag, Republican State Senator Paul Utke of Park Rapids called Governor Tim Walz responsible for the Feeding Our Future scandal.
The food program, which took in money from the Federal Child Nutrition Program, was overseen by the Minnesota’s Department of Education. It claimed to have given thousands of meals to children during the Covid-19 pandemic. The names of the children said to have received food were often made up. Seventy-eight people have been tried in federal court surrounding fraud.
“Our Attorney General along with the governor have turned their back on this. It’s thanks to the federal government that this is being exposed. Our state, under the direction of Keith Ellison did nothing,” Utke said.
Ellison’s press secretary Brian Evans told Flag Family News when Feeding Our Future sued the Minnesota Department of Education to force it to continue payments despite MDE’s suspicions, the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office defended the department from Feeding Our Future’s “bogus” lawsuit. He also pointed out when Ellison’s office became aware of the federal investigation into MDE, it assisted federal authorities.
Evans also said the Attorney General’s Office doesn’t have jurisdiction to prosecute most felonies and the domain of the office is primarily civil. He added when it comes to the investigation of and prosecution of criminal theft from a federal nutrition program, jurisdiction for that rests with the federal government.
In the 2025 Legislative session, the Senate passed a bill to install an Office of the Inspector General in the governor’s office to investigate and prosecute fraud. Utke said Walz was against it. The bill did not go anywhere in the House.
Utke said Walz was against the bill when it passed the Senate and then said he was in favor of it when it didn’t pass the House.
“The blame falls at his doorstep because we were trying to give him tools to help shut this down going forward and he didn’t want them,” Utke said.
Flag Family News reached out to the Walz’s communications director Claire Lancaster for a comment from the governor on Utke’s comments.
“The Governor has repeatedly said he is open to an OIG. The bill did not clear the House,” Lancaster said in an email.
“Meet The Press” Host Kristen Welker asked Walz on Sunday, November 30 if he takes responsibility for failing to stop fraud in Minnesota.
“Certainly I take responsibility for putting people in jail,” Walz explained. “Minnesota is a generous state, Minnesota is a prosperous state, a well-run state. That attracts criminals. Those people are going to jail.”
