State Rep. Elliott Engen—who is seeking election as Minnesota’s next state auditor—joined Liz Collin on her podcast.
WATCH THE INTERVIEW:
Rep. Engen, R-White Bear Township, was just 24 years old when he was elected and became Minnesota’s first “Gen Z” Republican representative. He is serving a second term representing parts of Anoka and Ramsey counties. However, Engen recently announced his run for auditor.
When Collin asked Engen about the extent of fraud in Minnesota, Engen did not mince words.
“It would make the mafia blush. It’s that bad. Every single day there’s a new shady deal.”
Engen explained that “our elites here in Minnesota have not only sat on their hands, but they really incentivized this culture. They’ve incentivized the fraud and they’ve done nothing about it. Only now, when it’s a major political issue, it presents an electoral risk for them.”
Engen discussed some of his plans if elected the next state auditor and his desire to take a more proactive role in helping to prevent fraud.
“Ultimately, what Democrats have attempted to do is say that the office of the auditor is only supposed to work with localities and municipalities when it comes to preventing fraud and finding it by working alongside them and performing their audits, but we can expand the office. There’s nothing in state statute that says that we can’t have a fraud prevention and recovery unit that works alongside the BCA [Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension] and sheriffs and county attorneys and our federal investigators to go and seek out that fraud and be proactive about it,” Engen said.
“We can also have an expansion of data analytics and integrate some AI tools to help us find that fraud or suspected fraud before it actually comes to light,” he added.
Toward shining a spotlight on fraud throughout Minnesota, Engen also announced that he’s launching a “30 fraud sites in 30 days tour.”
“We’re going to be going across the state and exposing some of the fraud and what allowed it to happen,” Engen told Collin.
The current state auditor, Julie Blaha, announced that she is not seeking reelection. Along with Engen, four other candidates have announced their candidacy for the state office.
Collin also asked Rep. Engen about his criticism of President Donald Trump in the past—and if Republican voters should be concerned.
Rep. Engen said, “I actually applaud President Trump when I feel like he deserves it. And I’m also critical when I feel that he’s not being conservative enough. I voted for him three times, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t also hold our own accountable.”
Liz Collin
Liz Collin is a multi-Emmy-Award-winning investigative reporter, news anchor, and producer who cares about Minnesota. She is the producer of The Fall of Minneapolis and Minnesota v We the People documentary films, and author of the Amazon best-selling book, They’re Lying: The Media, the Left, and The Death of George Floyd. Her work has prompted important state laws. Yet perhaps most of all, Liz has been giving a voice to the truth—and helping others tell their stories—for more than 20 years.
Dr. JC Chaix
Dr. JC Chaix is an editor, educator, and an expert in media studies. He wrote and directed the Alpha News documentary "The Fall of Minneapolis" and "Minnesota v We the People."
