Rep. Eli Crane clashed with Keith Ellison and Rev. Mariah Tollgaard during a House Oversight Committee hearing examining fraud allegations tied to programs in Minnesota and the federal government’s response.

The exchange focused heavily on a prior interview Ellison gave on CNN NewsNight with Laura Coates, where he was asked about whether his office had done enough to address fraud estimates that could reach billions of dollars.

Crane began by referencing the CNN interview.

"I want to start with you, Attorney General Ellison, in an interview with CNN host Laura Coates, she asked you about whether or not you did enough to stop the fraud. Do you remember that interview,, Attorney General?" Crane asked.

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Ellison responded that he did not recall the details.

"Congressman, I got to admit that I don't remember the details."

Crane then quoted Ellison’s previous remarks from the interview.

"I'll just tell you what you said when she asked you if you'd done enough to stop the fraud, and she mentioned the $9 billion you said, of course, we have done enough. We're doing more every single day. This is a political matter. This is not a serious thing. Do you remember saying that Attorney General Ellison?"

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Ellison replied that he remembered the conversation but disputed the interpretation of his comments.

"I remember the conversation. What I remember was that I was lamenting the political, politicized nature of this very serious problem."

Crane pressed Ellison further about the statement.

"You said it's not a serious thing. So now you're saying..."

Ellison responded, "Fraud id a serious thing"

Crane continued.

"Okay, well, that's not what you said on CNN, Mr. Ellison, you said this is a political matter, and this is a quote. This is not a serious thing. So I notice you're changing your tune now that you're before the House Oversight Committee."

Ellison responded, "I would have to disagree."

Crane then asked Ellison whether he understood the public reaction to the reported scale of the fraud.

"Do you understand Mr. Attorney General, why this adds gasoline to the fire when Americans are so frustrated with this government for their out of control spending and the amount of money they pay in taxes, and then to see $9 billion of it, an estimate of $9 billion getting stolen of their taxpayer dollars and being used to fund cars and vacations and homes and even fund terrorism. Do you understand how statements like that throw gasoline on the fire, Sir?"

Ellison replied, "Congressman, I believe that you are mischaracterizing what I said."

Crane responded, "No, I actually read you the quote. I'm not mischaracterizing you at all"

A clip from the CNN interview was then referenced, where the host asked Ellison about the scope of the fraud.

"One of the claims is that there has been hundreds of millions of dollars, but now there are some estimates that there could be $9 billion or more. Noem was just suggesting they took hundreds of people off the street who were involved in fraud. Are you confident your office has done enough?"

Ellison replied during the interview, "Of course, we've done enough, and we're doing more every single day. This is a political matter. This is not a serious thing."

Crane again questioned Ellison about the remarks.

"So how are you going to sit here, Attorney General, saying I'm mischaracterizing I read word for word, your quote. I then showed it to the entire dais, the entire audience here today. How are you going to sit here and say that I mischaracterized you?"

Ellison answered by clarifying what he meant.

"Congressman, I believe you mischaracterized me, because clearly what I was referring to by not seriously is that the serious issue of fraud is being politicized and converted into a political weapon that is not a serious matter. In my view. That is something that I believe all of us should take seriously, but we're not taking seriously enough. So, sir, I would say very clearly, fraud is a is a odious, horrible, malignant thing, and that's why it should not be turned into a political weapon. But we should come together on a bipartisan basis."

Crane then shifted to questioning Rev. Tollgaard about remarks she made in her opening statement.

"I want to move on. Reverend Tollgaard you said in your opening statement that today's hearing is about fraud in Minnesota, quote, unquote, which is serving as a pretext for the terror the federal government has brought to the people of Minnesota. This fraud has been used as a ration rationale for deploying 3000 federal immigrant enforcement agents into our state? Did you say that, Reverend?"

Tollgaard responded, "Yes."

Crane disputed the claim and explained the reason federal agents were deployed.

"This is absolutely false. These federal agents were actually brought in to the state of Minnesota for a very specific operation to remove illegal alien, alien criminals. It wasn't because of the fraud that's being handled under a completely different agency, and ice and everything else that's the US District Attorney. Okay, did you know that?"

Tollgaard responded, "The administration has linked all of these things together."

Crane responded by tying the issues to broader policy debates.

"They've linked the fact that you guys supported an open border that led in 15 to $20 million and some of the fallout from that is fraud, like the 9 billion we're talking about today. Some of it are the rapist, the gangsters, the you know, the people that are committing fraud. They're burglarizing people. They're carjacking people. It's all kind of linked together. It's also linked to the Save Act, which many of you guys and my Democrat colleagues don't want to vote on vote for even though 83% of Americans support it. It's all linked together. But that's not what this operation was about. So you're bearing false witness in this in this hearing today, because that's not what that operation was about at all."

Tollgaard replied by emphasizing the impact she said federal actions had on local communities.

"What I'm here to talk about is the suffering of Minnesotans at the. Hands of federal agents, including children and their parents, and the great devastation and harm that it has caused across our state and across our wonderful communities."

Crane concluded the exchange with a question about victims of crimes committed by illegal immigrants.

"Have you spoken about out about Laken Riley or over the American victims that have been raped, murdered or killed by these illegal aliens? Reverend, I didn't think so. I yield back."

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