House Republicans are pummeling former congressman-turned-presidential running mate, Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), over his handling of the Minneapolis-St. Paul riots that racked the state in 2020.
"Violent crime in Minnesota remains significantly elevated due to the lingering effects of the summer 2020 riots, in addition to the prosecution's refusal to hold criminals accountable following the riots and violence that occurred during the aftermath of the death of George Floyd," House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance Chairman Andy Biggs (R-AZ) said in a hearing on "soft-on-crime" policies in America Wednesday.
Republicans brought in two Minnesotans personally affected by violent crime to discuss how Walz's public safety policies had negatively affected them and served as examples of the greater issue statewide. Their concerns, they said, were warranted given Walz's recent announcement as Vice President Kamala Harris's vice presidential pick.
Jim Schultz, president of the Minnesota Private Business Council, said the decline began in 2020 when the police killing of George Floyd , a black man, led to protests and riots in the streets that lasted weeks.
"As Governor, Tim Walz refused to deploy the National Guard for days, allowing violence to escalate unchecked. While flames engulfed his cities, Walz twiddled his thumbs," Schultz said. "His inaction inspired violence across the country. The riots were ultimately the [second-] costliest in U.S. history. Those terrible days demonstrated that Tim Walz has at least mastered one skill, the art of standing idly by while his state spirals into chaos."
The 2020 riots resulted in 1,500 businesses vandalized, looted, or damaged in Minneapolis-St. Paul area; an $8 million deduction in metropolitan police funding; and 67 buildings destroyed by the fires, according to Biggs.
BREAKING: Protesters lit another fire. US Park Police are pushing them back with OC spray, “flash bangs.” Some protesters are clashing with police. They say the death of #GeorgeFloyd is “the straw that broke the camels back.” @nbcwashington @MSNBC pic.twitter.com/IQEafLw9An
— Shomari Stone (@shomaristone)
June 1, 2020 Brian Ingram, founder and CEO of Purpose Driven Restaurants in Minnesota, testified that in the business 's first five years of operation, it faced one burglary. Since 2020, it's been burglarized more than a dozen times.
Schultz said businesses in the Twin Cities have closed "left and right" due to break-ins, theft, and vandalism that often result in dropped charges or a plea deal for the suspect.
"Large parts of Minneapolis and St. Paul — after decades of successful growth and investment — have become ghost towns, substantially driven by violent crime. Once a powerhouse renowned for generating companies like Target, and Best Buy, and General Mills, Minnesota now boasts a distinction of having the sixth-slowest growing economy in the entire nation," Schultz said.
Schultz pointed to Walz for not stopping the Minnesota Freedom Fund as it fundraised $40 million that was used to bail out suspected criminals.
"Thanks to Kamala Harris's favorite charity and Walz’s tacit endorsement, violent offenders have received Get Out of Jail Free cards, and Minnesotans have paid the price with their lives," said Schultz.
However, preliminary state data released in January concluded that statewide crime was down across the board in 2023, including homicide, car theft, larceny, and rape.
Rep. Lucy McBath (D-GA) defended Democratic lawmakers and the White House's record addressing crime. She pointed to several bills passed during the Biden administration that cracked down on crime.
"Over the last four years, President Biden, Vice President Harris, and congressional Democrats have acted time and time again to invest in law enforcement, prevent crime, and make sure that those who commit these crimes are held accountable," said McBath. "Because of those laws, this year we are on track to have the lowest level of crime this country has seen in 50 years."
McBath touted the American Rescue Plan, which was passed in early 2021 and included $15 billion for public safety and violent prevention to local and state governments. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, passed in mid-2022, established enhanced background checks and created new codes of law that individuals could be charged with for gun trafficking.
However, those actions followed monthslong calls by Democrats in 2020 to defund the police amid the 2020 killing of Floyd.
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Still, the committee's top Democrat, New York Rep. Jerrold Nadler, criticized Republicans for holding what he said was "nothing more than a campaign hearing for Donald Trump." Trump spends a portion of each campaign rally touting crime statistics and national security concerns.
The Harris-Walz campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
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