In a fiery confrontation during a Senate hearing on Capitol Hill, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley accused Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison of corruption, presenting a 54-minute recording as evidence that Ellison accepted campaign contributions from individuals involved in the largest COVID-era fraud scheme in American history.
Hawley charged that Ellison promised fraudsters he would personally contact investigators to shut down their probe into the theft of $250 million from federal programs designed to feed hungry children. Just nine days after the recorded meeting, Ellison's campaign received $10,000 from the same individuals who were under active federal investigation at the time.
Reading directly from the transcript of the recording, Hawley told Ellison to his face, "You belong in prison," highlighting the attorney general's alleged pledge to kill the investigation into the massive fraud operation.
Investigator Seamus Bruner provided further testimony, revealing that $60 million in dark money flowed through networks tied to George Soros, Arabella Advisors, and other leftist groups to fund what he described as "the Minnesota insurrection." Bruner alleged that this funding supported coordinated riot activity across the state.
Among the 14 organizations that allegedly received tens of millions in these funds were the ACLU, Democracy Forward, and CAIR Minnesota, according to Bruner's account during the hearing.
Senator Ron Johnson also directly confronted Ellison, stating that two people are dead because the attorney general encouraged civilians to put themselves in harm's way during enforcement operations. Johnson accused Ellison of exploiting those deaths as political martyrs rather than accepting responsibility for his actions.
Throughout Johnson's rebuke, Ellison reportedly smirked, drawing sharp criticism from the senators for his apparent lack of accountability in the face of the serious allegations.
