At today's House Oversight Committee hearing, Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN) questioned Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN).
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00:00Minnesota. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. And I just want to say thank you so much for allowing me the opportunity to be waved on today, Mr. Chair. And I will just say that oversight is far livelier than ways and means. But, you know, and Governor Walz, I want to say thank you for being here because I know you've been very, very busy running around the country, giving speeches and having town halls in Republican districts.
00:24And passing balance budgets. Yeah, well, you were running around, though, I know, while they were trying to negotiate that.
00:30I'm a multitasker. My time, Mr. Governor Walz, it's my time. But there has been a lot of discussion and questions about policies that provide benefits for illegal aliens.
00:39And I understand, Governor, that you're going to say Minnesota is not a sanctuary state per se because the legislation was not passed.
00:47And just a yes or no question. Ranking Member Lynch had mentioned that there was a bill that was introduced for a sanctuary state this year in the Minnesota legislature.
00:57Would you have signed that bill? Did you support that bill?
01:00Thousands of bills introduced. Hypothetical. We don't have it. I operate under the same law you operated under Honest.
01:05Okay. Thank you, Governor Walz.
01:06Under Lieutenant Governor.
01:07But, Governor Walz, we all know that you probably had some opinion on that bill.
01:13You're just choosing not to answer because the answer was probably, yes, you would have signed that bill if it had passed.
01:20But, like Mr. Emmer, Mr. Crane, I think Mr. McGuire, a whole bunch of them mentioned the policies that Minnesota has.
01:30So, yes, I understand, not a sanctuary state per se.
01:34But the policies are certainly making it into, I think, as I recall, they mentioned driver's license for all.
01:40They mentioned the free tuition for illegal immigrants.
01:43They mentioned the Medicaid benefits.
01:46You know, so you're, so you, in essence, create a sanctuary state.
01:52You know, certainly not formally.
01:52You know the sheriff supported the driver's license bill.
01:55The hospitals and others.
01:57Governor Walz, I am certainly aware of that.
02:00I was, I served many years in the legislature.
02:02I still keep, and I have many friends there.
02:04I understand that.
02:05But you, in essence, they are creating a sanctuary state in practice.
02:11And so we are going to talk a little bit about the legislature because just earlier this week, both chambers of the Minnesota legislature passed HF-1.
02:20And you're probably familiar with it.
02:22I don't know if you've signed it yet or not.
02:23But it repeals MinnesotaCare eligibility for illegal immigrants, adults ages 18 and older.
02:31And with that recent repeal of eligibility for illegal immigrants, a policy that initially, I mean, it was after my time, was enacted in your time 2023 under your administration.
02:42Now being reversed with those budget negotiations, I was just wondering, first of all, do you know how many illegal immigrants were covered and are currently covered in Minnesota with Medicaid?
02:56I don't have the exact number.
02:57It's now Medicaid.
02:58It's state that does this through MinnesotaCare.
03:01Okay.
03:01But you still don't know how many.
03:05So all of those negotiations you were deeply involved in earlier that you mentioned you were deeply involved in, that number never came up?
03:12I don't have it in front of me right now.
03:14Okay.
03:14So we can certainly get it to you.
03:15I would love it.
03:16I would love to have that.
03:18But do you support, I mean, I understand.
03:21Did you support that provision that removing the illegal immigrants?
03:26I will sign it into law.
03:27No, no.
03:28Did you support it during the negotiations?
03:31Do I support it?
03:32I'm going to sign the bill.
03:34But there's negotiations.
03:36So I guess what I'm going to do is you didn't support.
03:37We're very good at it.
03:38That's why we have a balanced budget.
03:39You didn't support.
03:40And so I negotiated with the Republicans.
03:42Do I think it makes sense?
03:44Look, you know, Congresswoman, that federal law requires us to provide health care to people when they show up in emergency rooms.
03:49That's why the hospitals have uncompensated care.
03:51Reclaiming my time, because you're trying to change the subject, because I asked you very specifically, during negotiations, did you support the provision to eliminate illegal immigrants from health care?
04:04It's a question that makes no sense.
04:05I support it at the end of the day in a negotiation, which I agree to do and will sign it.
04:08Thank you, Governor.
04:09It's I mean, you were here in Congress.
04:11You understand what reclaiming your time means.
04:13Yeah, you understand that.
04:14So but I guess I will move on because, you know, there was concerns about SNAP provisions being cut and all kinds of.
04:25And but but you supported that.
04:29I mean, you supported that over the over government.
04:32Excuse me, over the health care to illegal immigrants.
04:36I guess I'm confused about because you had other cuts you had to make.
04:41So what did you all of the things that you guys have been talking about with law enforcement, education, school breakfast and lunch?
04:49Did you cut that during the budget negotiations this year?
04:51Because my understanding is you had quite a deficit.
04:54We don't.
04:55We have a budget surplus, as you know, Congresswoman.
04:57Well, long term.
04:58But you had to make cuts this year.
05:01We had a balanced budget.
05:02It's something we can help you all with.
05:04We have a balanced budget we agreed on.
05:05We left over one point nine billion on the bottom line for this biennium and even.
05:10But your structural budget.
05:11You had to make cuts reduced by 50 percent.
05:14You had to make cuts.
05:16Or no, you didn't make any cuts.
05:18We we made we balanced a budget.
05:20We moved and we invested.
05:21All right, Governor, I'm going to move on because I have one more thing and I'm running out of time because I really do want to talk about you had mentioned civility or someone had mentioned civility.
05:30There was a discussion earlier about civility.
05:32And it just but Mr.
05:36Mr.
05:37Fallon had mentioned how you had said, you know, you want to kick Republican ass.
05:42You you've mentioned bullying.
05:44There's another one where you're going to bully the bully the S.H.I.T. out of President Trump.
05:49There's all kinds of things.
05:50And and and then you had a discussion about civility.
05:53And I'm embarrassed because you say you're an educator and you're the governor of my state that I'm supposed to be proud of.
06:01And this is the kind of garbage, the example you're setting for our children that you're telling people to bully each other.
06:07And I try very hard not to say those kinds of things, because I understand that it is meaningful when you hold a position like this.
06:14You should not be saying things like that.
06:16Would you support the president's language?
06:18Gentle ladies.
06:19I am.
06:20The president is not in front of me right now, Governor.
06:23Gentle ladies.
06:24Time's expired.
06:24He should be.
06:25The chair recognizes the ranking member for a unanimous consent.
06:28Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
06:29I have here a statement from the distinguished representative, Betty McCollum, from Minnesota that notes that Minnesota's crime is declining, 30-year low.
06:40Companies are hiring.
06:41It's one of the.