How Tim Walz Was Accused of Letting Minnesota ‘Burn’ During the George Floyd Riots and Was Governor During a $250 Million COVID Fraud

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is facing renewed scrutiny over his handling of the George Floyd riots after Vice President Kamala Harris picked him as her running mate for the 2024 election.

Protests over the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in May 2020 quickly turned violent, with rioters burning and looting businesses in the Twin Cities.

Walz resisted sending in the National Guard for three days to address the city’s rising violence, but eventually decided to do so after facing intense criticism from residents. He let the city burn after rioters overwhelmed state and local police.

Walz argued at the time that deploying the National Guard to maintain order would only lead to more riots, saying that protesters needed space to express their outrage.

“I want to make it clear that philosophically there is an argument that having guns on the ground, where we just had a police killing, is seen as a catalyst,” he said during a press conference.

After the third night of rioting, during which a police station was set on fire, Walz allowed They had not responded adequately to the violence.

“That is an unmitigated failure that cannot be allowed to happen,” he said, referring to a call he received from a local MP about the lack of firefighters and police as frightened residents were trapped in their homes.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis immediately condemned Harris’ choice of Walz as a sign of “the most left-wing ticket” in history.

“Minnesota was the epicenter of the 2020 Black Lives Matter riots. Harris incited and Walz watched and let Minneapolis burn down,” DeSantis posted on social media.

A protester reacts standing in front of a burning building set on fire during a demonstration in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 29, 2020

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz speaks to the press about the death of George Floyd

Other Minnesota Republicans agreed.

“He showed a remarkable lack of leadership in dealing with the riots, which were extremely devastating and the aftermath of which continues to impact the quality of life and business climate in Minneapolis,” Minnesota Republican Party Chairman David Hann told Fox news on Wednesday.

Walz attempted to dismiss the violence as the product of drug cartels, white supremacists and outside groups, to claim that about 80 percent of the rioters came from out of state.

However, arrest reports are revealed that most of the arrested supporters were indeed from Minnesota.

Minnesota Republicans have also singled out Walz for mismanaging coronavirus funds that $250 million for nonprofit Feeding Our Future, ignoring warning signs that the organization was misusing funds.

The organization reportedly used the money for luxury cars, jewelry, travel and real estate, while only a small portion of the federal government money was used to feed children.

At the time, Republicans accused Walz of neglecting basic oversight and allowing the nonprofit to continue to receive money.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz arrives to speak at a press conference

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz speaks at a Biden-Harris campaign event, criticizing former President Donald Trump

The Minnesota Department of Education raised serious concerns about the group in 2018, but failed to address these issues and even gave the organization more money.

That earned him even more criticism from Republicans.

“If nothing changes, if nothing changes, either Governor Walz holds his appointed commissioners and other staff accountable and we stop the waste and fraud, or this continues,” Republican Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson said during a news conference responding to the scandal.