Keith Ellison’s meeting with those involved in Feeding Our Future before FBI raids: What really happened
GOP lawmakers question AG Ellison meeting
Minnesota Republican lawmakers are questioning a meeting Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison had, where some Feeding Our Future defendants were present. The meeting took place before the investigation into Feeding Our Future was made public, but while it was underway. FOX 9's Rob Olson has the story.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Item number 710 on Aimee Bock’s defense exhibit list from her recent federal trial is an audio recording of a meeting with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.
Bock’s defense attorney, Kenneth Udiobok, didn’t use it during the trial because no one from Ellison’s office testified for the government, therefore it was not relevant. He also didn’t think it would do anything to prove Bock’s innocence.
But he does think it’s important for what he believes it depicts.
"The chief law enforcement officer of the state of Minnesota," said Udoibok, "weeks before the investigation went overt, his expression showed that he did not believe Feeding our Future or Aimee Bock was involved in any fraudulent activity."
The recording doesn’t necessarily suggest Ellison didn’t believe fraud was occurring. Rather, it sounded like he was unaware of any investigation into fraud.
What's on the recording
What we know:
Udoibok said he got the recording from Aimee Bock, but is not certain who recorded it. He provided a copy to FOX 9.
The recording is a meeting he says took place in December 2021, just one month before the FBI raided Feeding Our Future and related properties and made their investigation public.
The group included several of those who were later found guilty or pled guilty to fraud-related charges. They identified themselves as the Minnesota Minority Business Association.
They begin by complaining that East African businesses are facing racism by state agencies, telling Ellison they "create unnecessary roadblocks and hurdles and at times conduct business in a very racist, xenophobic, Islamophobic manner."
Ellison sympathizes and offers to make some calls, saying that "just getting the question, just getting the inquiry from the AG is sometimes enough to make people knock it off."
But for the first 14 minutes of the meeting, the federal meal program is not mentioned.
Ellison appears unaware of program
What happens next:
When the group finally gets around to the federal meal program and Feeding Our Future, Ellison is unclear what they’re talking about.
"And for example," one man says, "one of the biggest issues facing in our community is the CACFP and how the Department of Education…"
Ellison interrupts: "Wait a minute, what is that?"
"Child and Adult Care Food Program," he is told.
For more than 20 minutes, they explain the food program, how the USDA funds come through the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE), down to sponsors and vendors and meal sites.
And they complain that MDE continues to drag their feet on approvals and reimbursements, and they want Ellison's help.
Ellison expresses surprise, despite this being weeks before the FBI investigation becomes public knowledge, which the AG’s office is taking part in.
"I’m telling you," Ellison says, "this has not come to my attention until now, really."
Repeatedly throughout the meeting, Ellison is told they want to contribute to his campaign, "putting our dollars in the right place and supporting candidates that fight to protect our interests."
Ellison never asks for money. Rather, he deflects the offers by saying he’s meeting with them as AG, not a candidate.
"Of course, I’m here to help," he says. "Let me be clear, I’m not here because I think it’s going to help my re-election."
But about a week later, Ellison’s campaign did receive several contributions from some of those present.
Ellison later returned contributions from those who were indicted.
Ellison's office explains the meeting
What they're saying:
In the wake of the recording being made public, Minnesota House Republicans issued a statement, saying "It’s disturbing to learn that Attorney General Ellison met with and offered verbal support to criminal defendants at the heart of the largest pandemic fraud scam in the country."
For clarity, the meeting occurred 10 months before any indictments.
When charges did come in September 2022, a news release from Ellison’s office said they’d been involved in the investigation for two years.
It also said the FBI had repeatedly asked that the AG and MDE not disclose the existence of the investigation to anyone so as not to tip anyone off.
In a statement to FOX 9, Ellison’s office said that he was unaware who he was meeting with:
"AG Ellison was asked to sit down with a friend that day, Imam Mohamed Omar. When the AG arrived, he was surprised to find others present but agreed to meet with them. It is a shame that these fraudsters tried to exploit the Attorney General's good-faith engagement, but they were not successful. Nothing happened as a result of the meeting."
Ellison's full statement
Full statement:
Here's Ellison's press secretary Brian Evan's full statement to FOX 9:
"Despite the Center for the American Experiment's best efforts to smear Attorney General Ellison for partisan political reasons, the recording of the meeting in question shows that Attorney General Ellison acted entirely appropriately. The Attorney General regularly meets with constituents, hears their concerns in good faith, and does his best to help people who need it, which is exactly what the recording of this meeting shows. AG Ellison was asked to sit down with a friend that day, Imam Mohamed Omar. When the AG arrived, he was surprised to find others present but agreed to meet with them. It is a shame that these fraudsters tried to exploit the Attorney General's good faith engagement, but they were not successful. Nothing happened as a result of the meeting, Feeding Our Future was raided by the FBI in January of 2022, and the people who orchestrated this plot are sitting in prison.
"Attorney The Minnesota Attorney General's Office (AGO) is statutorily obligated to represent over 100 state agencies and boards. When Feeding Our Future filed their bogus lawsuit against the Department of Education in an attempt to force the Department to continue paying Feeding Our Future, the Attorney General's Office defended the Department vigorously.
"Attorney General Ellison personally reviews and approves the lawsuits the office files or joins and the amicus briefs the office submits because those involve decisions about how best to allocate the time and resources of the Attorney General's Office to best serve the people of Minnesota. No such decision exists about whether or not to represent state agencies though, since that is an obligation of the office that is written into state law. As such, the Attorney General himself does not sign off every time an AGO attorney defends one of the over 100 boards and agencies the office is legally required to represent.
"It is completely accurate for the AGO to have said in September of 2022 that Attorney General Ellison and his office spent years working to hold Feeding Our Future accountable. This work first occurred at the staff level when the AGO defended the Department of Education, then the Attorney General himself got involved and the office worked to investigate and shut down charities that defrauded the federal nutrition program."