Trump to Campaign in Wisconsin With Brett Favre, Amid Mississippi Welfare Scandal
Donald Trump and Kamala Harris will be campaigning in several swing states on Wednesday. They will cross paths in Wisconsin, where Trump will be joined by former NFL quarterback Brett Favre in Green Bay.
Favre, a longtime supporter of Trump and other Republicans, spent most of his career playing for the Green Bay Packers. He won the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award three times and a Super Bowl. However, he has been in the news recently for a welfare scandal in his home state of Mississippi.
While not facing criminal charges, Favre is among more than three dozen people or groups being sued by the state of Mississippi. The state is trying to recover misspent money. Favre has repaid over $1 million in speaking fees he received. These fees were funded by the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program (TANF). Mississippi Auditor Shad White, a Republican, has stated that Favre never actually delivered the speeches. White also mentioned that Favre owes nearly $730,000 in interest.
Favre has posted and reposted social media messages supporting Trump and criticizing Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee.
“In all the elections I’ve seen over my lifetime, I’ve never seen one where there was so much hate,” Favre posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday. “It’s certainly sad to see.”
With six days left until Election Day, Harris will travel from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, to Madison, Wisconsin, and then on to Raleigh, North Carolina. Trump will be traveling in the opposite direction, heading to Green Bay after an event in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
The focus on Wisconsin is not surprising. Wisconsin is a key battleground state in presidential elections, often decided by a very small margin. Trump won the state in 2016 by 23,000 votes but lost it to Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 by 20,000 votes.
By campaigning with Favre, Trump is aiming to leverage the state’s strong support for the Packers and their former star quarterback. However, Favre’s involvement also brings baggage due to the Mississippi welfare spending scandal.
Mississippi has been ranked among the poorest states for decades, and the TANF program has been designed to help families in need. However, the Mississippi Department of Human Services allowed well-connected individuals to misspend tens of millions of welfare dollars between 2016 and 2019. This was revealed by White and state and federal prosecutors.
A nonprofit group called the Mississippi Community Education Center made two payments of welfare money to Favre Enterprises, Favre’s business: $500,000 in December 2017 and $600,000 in June 2018. The TANF money was supposed to be used for a new volleyball facility at the University of Southern Mississippi. Favre agreed to lead fundraising efforts for the facility at his alma mater, where his daughter started playing on the volleyball team in 2017.
The director of the Mississippi Community Education Center, Nancy New, pleaded guilty in April 2022 to charges of misusing public funds. Her son Zachary New, who also worked with the nonprofit, pleaded guilty to the same charges. They are both awaiting sentencing and have agreed to testify against others.
Favre testified before a Republican-led congressional committee that was investigating how states are struggling to effectively use welfare programs to help families in need. Some members of the committee have said the Mississippi welfare misspending scandal involving Favre and others highlights the need for “serious reform” in the TANF program.
Favre told the congressional committee that he was unaware of any wrongdoing in January.