Fact Check: GOP ad spins five-alarm falsehood that Walz backed defunding police

In a new television ad filled with flames and carnage, the Republican Governors Association is falsely tying DFL Gov. Tim Walz to an effort to defund police, a FOX 9 Fact Check found. The ad, which is part of a $750,000 commitment in the final days of Walz's re-election against GOP challenger Scott Jensen, flashes the words "murders, robberies, assaults, rapes" on screen. The four violent crime categories all increased in 2021, according to statewide data.