During a press conference on Monday, Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen said he wants a special investigation into the Feeding our Future fraud scandal.
"Someone's not telling the truth. Minnesotans deserve to know why," Jensen said.
Jensen said Minnesotans need to know the truth about why the state Department of Education continued payments to Feeding our Future after they learned that fraudulent activity was taking place.
With his running mate Matt Birk, Jensen also called for the resignation of Education Commissioner Heather Mueller.
"When $250 million goes missing in the private world, this is a fireable offense," Birk said.
Last week, the Department of Education said it continued payments under a judge's order, and the governor said it continued at the direction of the FBI.
Walz announced late last week that he wanted an investigation launched into the judge who continued the payments while knowing fraud was occurring. On Monday, Jensen accused the governor of fabricating the story.
"Tim Walz invented a scenario in which he was told about a non-existent ruling and then doubled down and called for a sitting judge to be investigated that never took place," Jensen said.
Ramsey County Judge John Guthmann also refuted Walz's claims in a statement issued online. Guthmann says he never ordered the Minnesota Department of Education to resume making payments to Feeding our Future after the department had suspended them due to possible fraud.
Attorney General Keith Ellison's office released a statement this afternoon about the investigation. In it, his office said that state prosecutors helped the Department of Education bring concerns and evidence to federal authorities from the beginning.
The attorney general's office also maintains it went along with the FBI's claims not to do anything to tip off Feeding our Future that an investigation was underway.
"I think it's highly unusual for the FBI to come into the state of Minnesota, do an investigation, and instruct the governor of Minnesota to continue to make fraudulent payments in the millions of millions of dollars so that they can continue their investigation unimpeded," Jensen said.
Jensen wants a special investigation done before the first of several televised debates between Walz and himself.
"I defy you to show a document that has the FBI telling Minnesota to make fraudulent payments," Jensen said.