Representative Gina Johnsen, a Republican in the Michigan House of Representatives, sounded off with a vengeance on Michigan Democratic Party treasurer Traci Michele Kornak, an influential and prominent Democrat in the state, after Kornak was caught pilfering thousands upon thousands of dollars from elderly Michigan residents who she was supposed to be protecting.
For reference, revelations of Kornak’s embezzlement scheme come amidst much the same thing being discovered in Detroit, where a local judge and three others were discovered to be running a scheme in which they stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from the elderly and used it for personal spending and investing.
It appears that Kornak has been discovered in a similar scheme, as State Rep. Johnsen commented on in a powerful press release sent out by her office and the Michigan House Republicans. It began, “On Wednesday, Kent County prosecutors charged former Michigan Democratic Party treasurer and Belmont attorney Traci Michele Kornak with two counts of embezzlement and one count of false pretenses related to her conduct as conservator for an elderly woman.” It later noted, “Kornak, who also served on Attorney General Dana Nessel’s 2018 transition team, faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.”
Continuing, the press release noted that the charges are very serious and well supported, saying, “The charges follow a months-long investigation into the suspected financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult and come one day after the Michigan House Oversight Committee raised ethical concerns about the earlier handling of the matter.”
Supporting that with more details regarding the serious allegations later on, the press release explained, “At recent Oversight Committee hearings, leadership highlighted subpoenaed records they say show more than $419,000 in questionable transactions connected to Kornak and questioned whether ethical safeguards were upheld while a prior investigation was underway.”
Adding to that, it noted that the revelations came about as part of a court appointment process, saying, “These records also revealed the investigation remained open while Kornak was being considered for a potential court appointment, raising serious questions about whether ethical firewalls were properly maintained.”
Speaking directly on the matter, Rep. Johnsen, who is involved in the Michigan state House DOGE task Force, said, “Kent County’s charges confirm what we have warned about. When red flags are ignored, vulnerable people suffer.” She added, “This case underscores the need for strong oversight and real accountability in government and public office.”
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Continuing, Rep. Johnsen said that the Michigan state House of Reps would continue fighting and working to protect the vulnerable from such awful abuses, and that doing such should not be a partisan matter. She said, “Protecting the most vulnerable in our communities is not a partisan issue.” She then added, taking the opportunity to call for yet more investigations, “Today’s charges are a reminder that safeguards must work and oversight must be relentless.”
Concluding, she noted that more needs to be done to ensure that ethics ruled are enforced as strictly as possible, saying, “We must continue to examine how investigations are handled, ensure ethical firewalls function as intended, and make clear that no one is above scrutiny.”