Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz faced criticism on social media Tuesday after he lamented the departure of the top fraud prosecutor in the state — despite suggesting he should be fired just a week ago.
« Joe is a principled public servant who spent more than a decade achieving justice for Minnesotans, » Walz posted on X Tuesday in response to news that U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson and other prosecutors had resigned, along with a New York Times report that the decision was made over disagreements with Trump’s DOJ.
« This is a huge loss for our state. It’s also the latest sign Trump is pushing nonpartisan career professionals out of the justice department, replacing them with his sycophants. »
The comment was puzzling for many on social media, given that just last week, Walz lashed out at Thompson, accusing him of defamation and suggesting « any other administration » would have fired him.
FROM CONGRESS, TO VP NOMINEE TO DISGRACED FORMER GOVERNOR: A LOOK AT THE RISE AND FALL OF TIM WALZ
« You saw a U.S. attorney stand up, which has been released, would have been let go by any other administration, speculating about things with no factual information, » Walz said in a press conference last week after Thompson said the fraud crisis in Minnesota could amount to as much as $9 billion.
« That’s defamation, and that’s coming from the U.S. attorney. We are under assault. »
SCATHING AUDIT REVEALS MORE FRAUD CONCERNS INSIDE TOP MINNESOTA AGENCY WITH FABRICATED DOCUMENTS, ‘MISCONDUCT’
Conservatives on social media quickly responded.
« Last week you said in a press conference that Joe Thompson should be fired, » Bill Glahn, a policy fellow at the Center of the American Experiment, posted on X. « Don’t pretend you didn’t. »
« Here’s Tim Walz calling for Joe Thompson to be fired… *checks notes* …last week, » Townhall columnist Dustin Grage posted on X. « Fascinating. »
« Just last week, Walz suggested Thompson be fired for finding fraud, » Minnesota GOP state Rep. Walter Hudson posted on X.
« You literally called for him to be fired *last week* and that he should be sued for defamation, » Minnesota GOP Deputy Comms Director David Anderson posted on X.
« Then why did you say he should be fired last week? » Minnesota GOP State Sen. Andrew Mathews posted on X.
Fox News Digital reached out to Walz’s office for comment.
Thompson was the lead prosecutor that helped uncover the massive $250 million Feeding Our Future food fraud case tied to the state’s Somali community.
The fraud has resulted in dozens of indictments and convictions, as well as shining a spotlight on fraud concerns in Minnesota. Walz chose not to run for a third term amid the widening scandal.
In addition, Thompson was involved in several other high-profile cases, including filing federal charges against Vance Boelter for his alleged shooting rampage that killed Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and seriously wounded Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, according to the newspaper.
Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
Source link : https://www.foxnews.com/politics/walz-slammed-for-flip-flop-after-praising-fraud-prosecutor-he-said-should-be-fired-last-week
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Publish date : 2026-01-13 22:00:00
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