MINNEAPOLIS — Gov. Tim Walz took responsibility Tuesday for not stopping fraud in the state’s social services programs sooner, but he said the scandal should not overshadow the investments he made in children and families during his tenure.

In his “exit interview” at the Minnesota Star Tribune’s North Star Summit, Walz expressed regrets about his handling of fraud, saying he “should have done more” and been harder on state agencies that administered the programs that were defrauded.

It was one of the governor’s more direct acknowledgments of what he could have done differently, coming less than two weeks after a Star Tribune investigation detailed how Walz and his top advisers failed to connect warning signs that emerged across state government.

“Fraud — should have stopped it sooner. We didn’t stop them. I accept that,” Walz said. “I think there does need to be accountability with that. And part of it is that, yep, that’s with me, I’ll step aside.”

Walz abandoned his bid for a third term at the beginning of the year amid intense national attention on fraud in the state.

But Walz drew a distinction between fraud in government programs and corruption by public officials. In an apparent swipe at President Donald Trump, Walz said neither he nor his family members used his position as governor to enrich themselves.

Walz also estimated that the fraud prosecuted in Minnesota so far, “and all the fraud that’s probably out there,” may amount to less than the cost of Trump’s White House ballroom project.

“It puts it into perspective,” Walz said. “It doesn’t make it right.”

Trump has put the ballroom’s cost at about $400 million, while contractor estimates obtained by the Washington Post put the broader East Wing project at $600 million.

Federal prosecutors have documented a few hundred million dollars’ worth of fraud in Minnesota to date, though they have said the total could reach into the billions when all is uncovered.

Walz said he hopes Minnesotans will remember his administration’s other accomplishments, such as free school meals, a new child tax credit, a paid family and medical leave program and protections for the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

“Those are legacy things to address climate. They’re legacy things to address livability,” Walz said. “And I get it, that fraud tainted a lot of that. It doesn’t change the fundamentals underneath it. This is the best state in the country to raise a child, and it will continue to be so because of those investments.”

Walz also reflected on his increasingly adversarial relationship with the federal government, saying “it’ll be good for Minnesota to get a fresh start” with a new governor.

He recalled how a Republican U.S. senator tried to blame him for the killings of Melissa and Mark Hortman after they were assassinated in June 2025. Hortman, the former speaker of the Minnesota House, was Walz’s close friend and governing partner.

Walz recalled watching television at home on another occasion and hearing a federal official refer to him as a “domestic terrorist.” He used profanity to express his reaction.

“I tell people, if it looks like it’s going to lightning, don’t stand next to me,” he said.

The 62-year-old governor ruled out ever running for public office again, saying he would rather “eat glass.”

He is currently working on a book inspired by Minnesotans organizing to oppose Operation Metro Surge, titled “Good Neighbors,” and said he hopes to eventually return to teaching. Walz also expressed interest in advocating for other states to create free school meals programs for students.

“It’s been a privilege of a lifetime to stand here,” he said. “I want to go out and share some of the knowledge I’ve got.”

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(Sofia Barnett of the Minnesota Star Tribune contributed to this story.)

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