The Megyn Kelly Show - March 05, 2026


Walz Grilled in Minnesota Fraud Hearing, Trump Preps Crucial Texas Senate Endorsement： AM Update 3⧸5

Topics
fraud allegations in Minnesota
Hosted by
Megyn Kelly
Mentioned
Trump Kristi Noem Keith Ellison James Tallarico Ahmaud Arbery Thomas Massey Brandon Gill Pete Hegseth John Cornyn Ken Paxton Tim Walz Dean Cain Representative Hefner Caroline Levitt Jasmine Crockett Kristen Robbins Emily Renda Sam Harris Clay Higgins Jamie Raskin and 4 more
Talarico Wins in Texas Primary, Noem Confronted by GOP Senators, Iran Conflict Widen： AM Update 3⧸4 Trump's Noem and Cornyn Decisions, Newsom's Meltdown, and Oprah's Shock Weight Loss, with Jesse Kelly and Mark Halperin ｜ Ep. 1267

Episode Stats


Length

19 minutes

Words per minute

153.46

Word count

2,933

Sentence count

209

Harmful content

Misogyny

1

sentences flagged

Hate speech

2

sentences flagged


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

Is it racist for a government official to identify fraud? No. Lawmakers grill Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison over allegations of massive fraud in the state s welfare system. Is it possible that multiple whistleblowers have come forward with evidence of widespread fraud that went undetected due to retaliation against whistleblowers? With officials wary of a backlash from politically-incorrect voters, with officials allegedly wary of the backlash from Minnesota s politically correct establishment, a bitter Senate race in Texas brewing, and Secretary Noem back on the Hill for round two of questioning from lawmakers. All that and more coming up in a moment on your AM Update.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Misogyny classifications generated with MilaNLProc/bert-base-uncased-ear-misogyny .
Hate speech classifications generated with facebook/roberta-hate-speech-dynabench-r4-target .
Topics generated with Qwen2.5-3B-Instruct.
Hosts, guests, and mentioned names generated with spaCy (en_core_web_sm), reconciled against Wikidata.
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00:00:30.000 Good morning, everyone.
00:00:34.100 I'm Emily Jashinsky, host of After Party and the Megyn Kelly Wrap-Up Show on Sirius XM Channel 111.
00:00:40.280 It's Thursday, March 5th, 2026.
00:00:43.000 This is your AM Update.
00:00:45.000 Is it racist for a government official to identify fraud?
00:00:48.740 No.
00:00:49.960 Lawmakers grill Minnesota Governor Tim Walls and State Attorney General Keith Ellison
00:00:55.020 over allegations of massive fraud in the state's welfare system.
00:00:58.640 decimated, destroyed, defeated.
00:01:01.760 Pick your adjective.
00:01:03.020 The U.S.-Israel joint operation against Iran continuing,
00:01:06.780 with American forces waging a relentless barrage of strikes.
00:01:10.660 A bitter Senate race in Texas brewing.
00:01:13.220 Democrats choose their candidate as the Republicans await a key endorsement from President Trump.
00:01:18.240 And Secretary Noem back on the Hill for round two of questioning from lawmakers.
00:01:22.180 All that and more coming up in just a moment on your AM Update.
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00:02:45.540 Minnesota Governor Tim Walls and State Attorney General Keith Ellison facing tough questions
00:02:50.840 before the House Oversight Committee yesterday
00:02:53.040 as lawmakers probe allegations of widespread fraud across Minnesota's taxpayer-funded welfare programs.
00:03:00.480 The Fed so far prosecuting and convicting dozens, mostly members of Minnesota's Somali community,
00:03:06.280 relating to three major schemes.
00:03:08.420 A meals program for needy children called Feeding Our Future,
00:03:12.300 a program for individuals at risk of homelessness,
00:03:14.600 and an autism therapy program.
00:03:17.400 The scale of the alleged fraud, believed to be at least $9 billion in plundered taxpayer dollars,
00:03:24.580 drawing such immense backlash, Governor Walls in January suspending his re-election campaign.
00:03:31.580 Congressman Pat Fallon of Texas, a Republican,
00:03:34.300 pressing Governor Walls on data surrounding the Somali community's use of state services in Minnesota.
00:03:40.440 Do you believe the 70,000-strong Somali community as a whole has made a positive impact on your state?
00:03:47.560 I do.
00:03:48.620 And do you have any idea what percentage of the native-born Minnesotans,
00:03:52.340 all races, live in poverty in your state right now?
00:03:55.020 I don't have specifically.
00:03:56.300 I'll share it with you.
00:03:57.080 It's 8%.
00:03:57.700 For the Somali community, it's 52%.
00:03:59.520 How about receiving food stamps?
00:04:01.860 I don't have.
00:04:02.300 All right, I'll run it down with you.
00:04:03.900 It's 7% and then compared to 54% in the Somali community.
00:04:08.340 And then one family member, at least, on Medicaid, it's 18% for Minnesota, 73% for the Somali community.
00:04:15.920 Governor, do you happen to know what the percentage is of all those who have currently been charged
00:04:19.460 in this staggering social services fraud scheme were native-born Minnesotans?
00:04:25.280 What percentage?
00:04:26.340 I do not have that.
00:04:27.400 I think it was 85 out of 98, which comes out to 13% Minnesotan and 87% Somali-Minnesotan.
00:04:33.980 The only way this kind of fraud can reach this scale is if there's people in power that are colluding
00:04:40.640 and collaborating and willfully blinding themselves to the realities around them.
00:04:46.660 Congressman Brandon Gill of Texas, a Republican, pressing Governor Walz on allegations that the
00:04:52.000 fraud ran undetected due to retaliation against whistleblowers, with officials allegedly wary
00:04:58.180 of backlash from Minnesota's politically active Somali voting bloc.
00:05:02.360 Is it racist for a government official to identify fraud?
00:05:06.780 No.
00:05:07.940 No.
00:05:08.340 Is it Islamophobic?
00:05:10.260 To identify fraud?
00:05:11.580 To identify fraud?
00:05:12.720 No, I don't believe it would be.
00:05:14.180 How come multiple whistleblowers have said that your administration told them not to say
00:05:19.060 anything about widespread fraud across multiple agencies because doing so would be considered
00:05:24.320 racist or Islamophobic?
00:05:26.360 I can't speak to it because it's not anything I would say.
00:05:28.820 And then we heard from Representative Kristen Robbins, quote, we have dozens of credible
00:05:33.460 whistleblower reports saying the exact same thing that people were told not to say anything
00:05:38.000 because they'd be called racist or Islamophobic or it would hurt the state.
00:05:42.880 Do you think it's racist or Islamophobic to highlight and try to stop fraud?
00:05:47.520 It is not.
00:05:48.120 And I certainly wouldn't know.
00:05:49.080 It's not.
00:05:49.560 But that was the message your administration was sending to multiple whistleblowers.
00:05:53.320 Congresswoman Emily Randall of Washington, a Democrat, tossing Governor Walz a softball,
00:05:58.980 asking why he thinks the Trump administration has become so, quote, obsessed with alleged
00:06:04.160 fraud in Minnesota.
00:06:06.040 The governor speculates.
00:06:07.360 I think it's been pretty clear the president does not like me personally.
00:06:11.520 I think he continues to tell lies about our electoral system, claiming that he's won
00:06:15.760 all three times when he lost all three times.
00:06:17.900 Um, I think he has people around him who were trying to find quotas around immigration and
00:06:24.080 they saw a perfect storm, if you will, that included some Somali folks and a whole lot,
00:06:30.980 you know, if we're, if we're going to condemn folks, there's no Somali folks in the Epstein 1.00
00:06:34.320 files, things like that.
00:06:35.820 We know, but I don't know.
00:06:38.160 It's an obsession.
00:06:38.920 And I come back to it again.
00:06:41.180 I think it's because we are so ideologically opposed to making children go hungry, people
00:06:46.580 go unhoused.
00:06:48.560 We invest in education, we invest in research, and we believe everybody has a place.
00:06:54.440 And so I think it's just personal about how we do business.
00:06:57.480 Meanwhile, Congressman Clay Higgins of Louisiana, a Republican, turning his focus to Minnesota
00:07:03.220 Attorney General Keith Ellison.
00:07:04.820 So you have the authority to lead your state's effort to respond to this massive fraud at
00:07:12.860 the state level from within the health care realm where government money has been stolen
00:07:20.240 at very, very high levels, unprecedented levels in your state.
00:07:25.180 Are you leading that effort for the state of Minnesota?
00:07:29.800 We are leading the effort to prosecute Medicaid fraud in Minnesota.
00:07:33.220 I'm not talking about Medicaid fraud.
00:07:35.560 Don't hide behind that.
00:07:37.440 You have the authority to prosecute anything criminally that the governor asks you to.
00:07:42.660 And this thing is big.
00:07:44.440 I'm giving you an opportunity, sir.
00:07:46.260 Are you leading the criminal investigative effort into this massive fraud across the board in
00:07:53.600 the health care spectrum in the state of Minnesota or not?
00:07:57.740 We are following the law.
00:07:59.480 You are not leading.
00:08:01.180 You're not leading.
00:08:02.700 I must say, Mr. Chairman, that the Attorney General of the state of Minnesota should resign.
00:08:09.840 As the U.S.-Israel joint operation against Iran enters its fifth day, U.S. military force
00:08:15.840 is releasing a relentless 24-hour barrage against Iranian military assets.
00:08:21.140 In a joint briefing yesterday, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
00:08:25.760 of Staff Dan Raisin Cain providing an update on the campaign.
00:08:29.880 Here, Secretary Hegseth.
00:08:31.420 The Iranian Air Force is no more built for 1996, destroyed in 2026.
00:08:38.560 The Iranian Navy rests at the bottom of the Persian Gulf.
00:08:43.060 Combat ineffective, decimated, destroyed, defeated.
00:08:47.240 Pick your adjective.
00:08:47.840 In fact, last night, we sunk their prized ship, the Soleimani.
00:08:54.220 Looks like POTUS got him twice.
00:08:57.660 Their Navy, not a factor.
00:08:58.980 Pick your adjective.
00:09:00.120 It is no more.
00:09:00.880 In fact, yesterday, in the Indian Ocean, and we'll play it on the screen there, an American
00:09:07.160 submarine sunk an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters.
00:09:14.200 Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo.
00:09:16.560 Quiet death.
00:09:18.200 The first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II.
00:09:21.520 According to the Secretary, more American forces are en route to the region, even as General
00:09:27.440 Cain reports Iranian air defense capabilities are badly damaged, with a significant decrease
00:09:32.940 in retaliatory strikes.
00:09:34.960 U.S. forces striking more than 2,000 targets in the first 100 hours of the mission.
00:09:40.960 Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt yesterday announcing President Trump will attend the dignified transfer
00:09:46.420 service for the six Army soldiers killed in Kuwait amid the strikes.
00:09:51.520 The ceremony will take place at Dover Air Force Base.
00:09:54.780 The families of the fallen invited to attend.
00:09:57.440 The timing of the transfer has not yet been announced.
00:10:01.680 Coming up, a heated Texas Senate showdown intensifies.
00:10:06.180 Democrats lock in James Tallarico as their nominee, while Republicans brace for a looming
00:10:11.220 Trump endorsement.
00:10:12.400 And Secretary Noem back on Capitol Hill for round two with lawmakers.
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00:11:19.740 Texas voters now gearing up for a bitter Republican runoff campaign, setting the stage for a bruising fight ahead of November's general election.
00:11:31.680 On the Democrat side, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett officially conceding the race to State Representative James Tallarico yesterday morning. 0.98
00:11:39.300 Tallarico winning the primary with 52% of the vote compared to Crockett's 46.
00:11:44.080 The Congresswoman writing on X, quote,
00:11:47.080 Texas is primed to turn blue, and we must remain united because this is bigger than any one person.
00:11:53.580 With the primary behind us, Democrats must rally around our nominees and win.
00:11:58.000 I'm committed to doing my part and will continue working to elect Democrats up and down the ballot.
00:12:03.500 Former Vice President Kamala Harris, who issued a last-minute robocall endorsement for Crockett,
00:12:08.620 now throwing her support behind Tallarico, calling on Democrats to unite behind the nominee.
00:12:14.980 With Tallarico securing his place on the November ballot,
00:12:17.980 Republicans quickly flooding social media with past videos and resurfaced posts from the Democrat,
00:12:23.500 highlighting his radical progressive ideas.
00:12:26.300 In a May 2020 thread on X, Tallarico writing about Ahmaud Arbery,
00:12:31.080 a 25-year-old black man from Georgia who was fatally shot while jogging by two white men.
00:12:35.860 Tallarico writing, quote,
00:12:37.260 Ahmaud Arbery is the latest American killed by the virus of racism.
00:12:41.820 White skin gives me and every white American immunity from the virus, 1.00
00:12:45.880 but we spread it wherever we go, through our words, our actions, and our systems.
00:12:50.520 We don't have to be showing symptoms, like a white hood or a Confederate flag, to be contagious.
00:12:56.100 Congressman Brandon Gill of Texas also posting a clip from a public education committee hearing
00:13:01.460 in which Tallarico addressed the issue of biological sex.
00:13:05.320 I want us all to be aware of is that modern science obviously recognizes that there are many more than two biological sexes.
00:13:14.380 In fact, there are six, which, honestly, Representative Hefner surprised me, too.
00:13:19.780 Surprised me, too, because I am not well-versed in this issue area.
00:13:24.840 I'm not a scientist.
00:13:25.400 I'm a politician, a lot worse than a scientist.
00:13:27.980 Tallarico now poised to face the winner of the Republican runoff between incumbent Senator John Cornyn
00:13:33.660 and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
00:13:37.220 Senator Cornyn emphasizing his voting record, arguing it aligns with President Trump nearly 100% of the time,
00:13:43.840 despite past clashes between the two.
00:13:46.580 Team Cornyn spending millions on ads highlighting Paxton's long list of legal battles and ethical controversies.
00:13:53.560 Paxton spending far less money on the race, focusing instead on his record suing Democrats,
00:13:59.980 while arguing Texas needs new leadership in Washington after Cornyn's more than two decades in the Senate.
00:14:05.840 President Trump weighing in on Truth Social yesterday, writing the race, quote,
00:14:09.700 Trump adding he plans to issue an endorsement soon, and will ask the candidate he does not back to drop out of the race.
00:14:29.820 The Atlantic reporting Trump is leaning toward Cornyn, as recent Emerson polling shows Cornyn as the stronger candidate against Tallarico.
00:14:38.440 The Republican runoff is scheduled for May 26th, at least for now.
00:14:44.040 DHS Secretary Kristi Noem back on Capitol Hill yesterday for round two, this time appearing before the House Judiciary Committee.
00:14:52.100 Lawmakers breaking largely along partisan lines with their questioning.
00:14:55.620 Ranking member Jamie Raskin of Maryland using his opening statement to sharply criticize the Secretary over a number of issues,
00:15:03.500 including two fatal confrontations between federal agents and protesters in Minnesota,
00:15:08.460 a costly DHS ad campaign prominently featuring Noem, and the department's purchase of private jets.
00:15:14.780 You're treating the billions of dollars our colleagues showered on your department like a personal slush fund.
00:15:20.940 You budgeted an astonishing $220 million for media consultant contracts,
00:15:26.460 so you can star in self-promoting photo shoots and lavish ad campaigns.
00:15:32.380 You're living rent-free in the official waterfront residence reserved for the commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.
00:15:39.860 You spent $172 million to buy not one, but two luxury jets for your travel,
00:15:46.280 and now you're using taxpayer funds to lease a third jet.
00:15:50.340 Secretary Noem, you're flying high now, maybe even a little bit too close to the sun.
00:15:55.620 But with all these free planes and houses and pilots, you've traveled a long distance from your actual job.
00:16:02.040 With Democrats offering the Secretary few opportunities to respond during lengthy monologues,
00:16:08.100 Republicans offering their own time to allow Secretary Noem to defend herself.
00:16:12.680 Here, Congressman Daryl Issa of California.
00:16:15.540 Is it fair to say that you and your family are at greater risk because of the job you're doing
00:16:22.160 than anyone who's had your job perhaps since 9-11?
00:16:26.020 Yes, sir. I can't speak specific to the threats, but...
00:16:28.460 And so when the ranking member spends so much time talking about your being in a protective housing,
00:16:35.860 by the way, one that is under your authority and one that the head of the Coast Guard normally would be in,
00:16:42.320 you're simply in the housing that he historically had.
00:16:45.400 Let me clarify a couple of things. I'm not in the commandant's house.
00:16:47.940 I'm in a Coast Guard house, but not the commandant's house. The commandant is in his house.
00:16:51.900 And I will also tell you that I rent that facility.
00:16:54.120 I rent where I stay and pay personal dollars to do that.
00:16:58.460 Democrats spending much of their time pressing the secretary on Operation Metro Surge,
00:17:03.520 the large-scale immigration enforcement operation targeting Minnesota's Twin Cities,
00:17:08.140 as well as ICE tactics and oversight of federal agents.
00:17:11.960 Are agents trained to break the windows of people whose cars they encounter and drag them out
00:17:18.780 forcibly without asking questions? Is that their training?
00:17:23.020 DHS is supposed to be protecting our residents and upholding constitutional protections,
00:17:29.080 but you've turned that on the head. You have actually turned the United States government
00:17:33.220 against its own residents.
00:17:36.300 And I want you to know that Americans will get accountability for the damage that you have done,
00:17:41.520 the lawlessness of aspects of DHS, for killing innocent Americans, for terrorizing children.
00:17:47.500 And they will get accountability.
00:17:49.560 Congressman Thomas Massey of Kentucky, a Republican,
00:17:52.540 using his time to question the secretary about body cameras for federal agents involved
00:17:57.080 in immigration enforcement operations.
00:17:59.460 I want to ask you for an update on body cameras and your opinion on that. That's something that
00:18:04.420 the Democrats have demanded, but it's something that I think might just be common sense.
00:18:09.060 Yes, we certainly are working to get body cameras on all of our officers. CBP has had them on many
00:18:15.120 of their agents that interact with people for the last several years, but they haven't been
00:18:20.760 many times supported financially for running the systems that run the body cameras. Also,
00:18:25.300 ICE has body cameras deployed, but we're not funded for body cameras right now. So that's one
00:18:29.580 thing I'd like to ask you all to do. I have said that we will deploy every body camera that we have,
00:18:35.600 but clearly we need tens of thousands more. And I agree with you. Our, our officers overwhelmingly,
00:18:41.200 they support body cameras because they give you the full context, context of the, of the
00:18:46.500 interaction. Representative Massey joining me on After Party last night.
00:18:53.380 That'll do it for your AM update. I'm Emily Drashinsky, host of After Party. Catch the Megyn Kelly
00:18:58.400 show live on SiriusXM's The Megyn Kelly Channel 111 at noon east on youtube.com slash Megyn Kelly
00:19:04.900 and on all podcast platforms.