Tim Walz vows to bring more Somalians to Minnesota, give more government hand-outs amid massive fraud revelations

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz appeared in Seattle as the featured guest at a fundraising luncheon for Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, pledging to bring more Somali immigrants to his state, even as he faces intensifying scrutiny and backlash at home over a major welfare fraud case. “Instead of demonizing our Somali community, we’re going to do more to welcome more in,” Walz said to applause. “Instead of cutting programs, we’re going to enhance them.”

Walz boasted that Minnesota takes more refugees per capita than any other state. He told the crowd that “our neighbors are being demonized” and said communities were being “terrorized” and “literally picked up off the streets,” referencing immigration enforcement actions. The governor also criticized federal immigration agents brought in from Texas to assist with raids in Minnesota, quipping that cold weather kept them inside their vehicles and describing Minnesotans taunting them outside.

Walz framed his support for Somali Minnesotans as a direct rebuttal to political attacks. “These folks better not ever mistake our kindness for our weakness because we are going to defend our neighbors,” he said. Acknowledging his own anger, he added that the response should be “positive actions to improve lives.”

The luncheon, held at the Washington State Convention Center, drew more than 1,000 supporters, according to The Center Square, including table sponsors who paid as much as $2,500 to attend. Walz received a standing ovation when he was introduced and again as he took the stage in a sixth-floor ballroom while donors ate lunch.

Walz’s appearance comes as he faces intense criticism and a federal investigation tied to a large fraud scheme involving Minnesota state social services programs. The controversy has included allegations that warnings were missed and that oversight failures allowed fraud to persist for years and steal over $1 billion from taxpayers. At the Seattle fundraiser, Walz did not focus on the details of the investigation, but he referenced the broader backlash he says immigrant communities are facing and presented his policy approach as a counter to those attacks.

Walz also took aim at President Donald Trump early in his speech, joking that “people who are smart” tend to “rub Donald Trump the wrong way,” a line that prompted laughter and applause, as he referenced Ferguson’s background as a state chess champion.

Before Ferguson spoke, freshman Democratic Rep. Osman Salahuddin of Redmond urged attendees to scan a QR code to donate immediately, noting a temporary pause in campaign fundraising would begin in three days due to the start of the legislative session. Ferguson then took the podium to a standing ovation, highlighting his tenure as attorney general and the state’s legal fights against the Trump administration.

“We were the first state to take on Trump in 2017 and win, and the first state to take on Donald Trump in 2025 and win was Washington state,” Ferguson said, also praising his staff and the office of Attorney General Nick Brown. Ferguson told donors he intends to continue resisting federal policies, arguing that Washington’s budget challenges are, in part, driven by decisions in Washington, DC.

The crowd included a slate of current and former elected officials and candidates, among them Seattle Mayor-elect Katie Wilson, newly sworn-in King County Executive Girmay Zahilay, former State Sen. Mark Mullet, and other state and local politicians.