During a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee hearing this week, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) confronted Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. The Missouri Republican exposed Ellison's ties to the Feeding Our Future scandal, where fraudsters stole $250 million in federal child nutrition funds. 

Hawley didn't hold back, charging the Democrat with protecting fraudsters who funneled cash to terrorists and traffickers, as well as Ellison’s own campaign coffers, and telling him he “ought to be in jail.”

Hawley opened the confrontation by spotlighting $10,000 in campaign donations Ellison pocketed from players in the Feeding Our Future mess, which the New York Post broke last year, detailing how the money flowed in right after a December 11, 2021, meeting at Ellison's office.

Ellison repeatedly denied it, calling it a false statement. But Hawley read directly from the meeting transcript, where money was discussed repeatedly. 

 An audio recording of that meeting revealed that Ellison met with members of the Somali community who were later convicted in the scandal. In the recording, the individuals ask Ellison for help securing funding before discussing campaign donations. 

“The only way that we can protect what we have is by inserting ourselves into the political arena,” a man is heard saying on the audio.

“Putting our votes where it needs to be. But most importantly, putting our dollars in the right place. And supporting candidates that will fight to protect our interests.”

“That's right,” Ellison replied.

Ellison accepted $10,000 in campaign contributions from the fraudsters mere days later, as did his son, Minneapolis councilman Jeremiah Ellison.

Hawley proceeded to read from that recording, quoting Ellison's own words back to him.

"Send me the names of all these folks who are investigating them," Ellison said. He promised to call the Education Department and ask what was going on. "I already have my team working on this," he told them, according to the transcript. "What day should we get together to discuss it again?"

Ellison pledged repeatedly to help them fight the investigators.

"You have my attention. I'm concerned about this," he said. "Let's go fight these people."

"Why'd you do it? Was it worth it?" Hawley asked.

"This is what accountability looks like, of which you've had none," Hawley countered.

"You helped fraudsters defraud your state and this government of $9 billion, and you got a fat campaign contribution out of it. You ought to be indicted. That's the truth."

Ellison shot back hard. He denied the donations flat-out: "a lie" and "No donations came." He insisted, "You're completely wrong. … I did not see anybody." Hawley countered with video proof of their nearly hour-long sit-down—easy to find online. Ellison dismissed Hawley's quotes as "cherry-picked."

As the exchange got heated, Ellison repeatedly talked over Hawley, which the senator didn’t appreciate. “It's my hearing, pal,” he snapped.

"Don't call me 'pal,’” Ellison shot back.

"Well, I should call you a prisoner because you ought to be in jail." 

He demanded resignation. Ellison flipped it: "I was thinking the same thing about you."

Hawley didn't stop there. He brought up testimony from the previous day showing where the fraudulent money went: to terrorist groups, transnational criminal organizations, drug trafficking, and child trafficking. "You took $10,000 and helped them do it," he said. Ellison kept denying everything, but Hawley had receipts. 

He cited a Minnesota Star Tribune report that Partners in Nutrition raised concerns with the attorney general’s office in 2018 and 2019, but Ellison did nothing. The New York Post reported that Ellison accepted campaign donations from individuals linked to the fraud after meeting with them.

"You've been right at the center of this fraud thing from the beginning, and you've enabled it," Hawley said. "You should resign."

Ellison shot back, "And, sir, you should resign. I was thinking the same thing about you."