Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was aware of the widespread welfare fraud in his state “for years” and “repeatedly failed to act,” alleges a congressional report released on Wednesday.  Walz and the state’s Attorney General Keith Ellison are set to testify Wednesday about the $9 billion scandal before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The report, which also alleges that Ellison knew of the welfare fraud in Minnesota, draws from interviews with state employees and whistleblowers. “Senior officials in the governor’s office and Attorney General Ellison’s office were aware of credible fraud concerns in Minnesota’s social services programs as early as 2019 within the Department of Human Services (DHS) and by April 2020 within the Department of Education (MDE), despite later public statements by Governor Walz suggesting otherwise,” the report says.  The committee and staff conducted transcribed interviews with nine key current and former Minnesota state officials. The investigation focuses on alleged money laundering and fraud in Minnesota’s social services programs, uncovered by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota.  The report, titled “The Cost of Doing Nothing,” further alleges retaliation against whistleblowers, including surveillance, and quotes some officials as not acting against suspected fraud out of fear of being labeled a racist.  “As a result, potentially billions of American taxpayer dollars were allowed to flow to fraudulent actors, while vulnerable populations were harmed and whistleblowers were ignored, sidelined, and retaliated against,” the House report says.  This led to about $300 million in federal child nutrition funds and potentially $9 billion in Medicaid-related funds lost or placed at significant risk, according to the report.  “Testimony obtained by the committee reveals that Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison were aware of widespread fraud in social service programs, lied about their knowledge of the fraud, and retaliated against employees who dared to raise concerns,” House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said in a statement.  The Cost of Doing Nothing_How Tim Walz and Keith Ellison Fueled Minnesota’s Fraud Explosion_3.4.26_FINALDownload The report also alleges whistleblower retaliation against state employees who raised red flags at the Minnesota Department of Human Services.  “Whistleblowers within the DHS have alleged that Governor Walz not only knew about this fraud, but that he retaliated against whistleblowers, ‘spen[ding] millions on surveilling staff and hiring private investigator (sic) or law firms to silence staff,’” the report says. The agency’s then-temporary commissioner confirmed to investigators that the agency “used outside entities” to investigate its own staff, according to the report. “Instead of protecting vulnerable Americans, they handed over billions in taxpayer dollars to fraudsters and threw their own state employees under the bus,” Comer added. “Governor Walz and Attorney General Ellison are appearing before the committee because the American people deserve clear answers about how this rampant fraud was allowed to flourish under their watch.” Walz and Ellison have previously denied knowledge of fraud or retaliation against whistleblowers. They have said they are trying to address fraud in the state.  The report said “state agencies had clear authority to suspend or stop payments” to providers suspected of fraud without direction from courts or law enforcement agencies. “Litigation threats and fear of accusations of discrimination, not legal or regulatory barriers, were repeatedly cited by state officials as the reason for continued funding of entities suspected of fraud,” the House report says.  The bulk of federal fraud convictions in the state took place among Somali residents. However, the state legislative committee told the congressional panel that Somalis were also among the best whistleblowers.  The report later adds that: “Dozens of whistleblowers also reported that they were told not to say anything about the fraud because they would be called ‘racist’ or ‘Islamophobic’ or that it would hurt the state.” The report said that the FBI never instructed Minnesota officials to continue payments to Feeding Our Future, one of the key charities accused of fraud. Walz said otherwise. The post ‘Failed to Act’: Walz, Ellison Knew About Minnesota Fraud ‘for Years,’ House Report Claims appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Senior Trump administration officials said Iran attempted to prolong nuclear talks and deceived the United States about the use of its research reactor, leading negotiators to determine the Islamic state was not acting in good faith. In a call with reporters on Tuesday, an administration official said that Iran had attempted to drag out negotiations over its nuclear program and delayed the Americans’ request for a detailed proposal, before the U.S. decided to act with Israel and strike Iranian military and political targets this weekend. During several rounds of talks between representatives of the two countries, Iran had maintained it did not intend to build a nuclear weapon, but it had enriched uranium far beyond the level needed for civilian energy use and close to the level needed for a bomb, Reuters reported. Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi, one of the diplomats involved in the talks, told CBS News last week following the third round of talks that the Iranians were willing to minimize enrichment, forgo stockpiling nuclear material, and allow IAEA inspections. However, the administration said it learned that Iranians were hiding their nuclear enrichment program underground. The regime claimed it used its Tehran Research Reactor for civil purposes, but negotiators determined Iran was stockpiling fuel to later use to create a weapon. “The claim that they were using a research reactor to do good for the Iranian people was a complete and false pretense to hide the fact that they were stockpiling there,” an official said. “If it’s really about building radio isotopes and creating medicines for their people and doing all this good stuff that they profess to be doing, then why wouldn’t they take the fuel from us when we offered it to them?” an official asked The U.S. offered the Iranians free nuclear fuel to use for their civilian nuclear program, but Iranians declined, saying enrichment is a national, “inalienable” right, an administration official said Tuesday. “We said to them that you may deem that to be your right,” the official said. “We deem our right the ability to stop that, and we’re going to stop it, and we’re not going to allow it.” Negotiators demanded that the Iranians have their facility above ground, and the Iranians shot back that it could then be bombed. “If there’s nothing nefarious being done there, then, then you shouldn’t be worried about a bomb,” an official said. “So it was one of these things where just everything was just trying to create a construct that would give them the capabilities and materials they needed into the future to produce nuclear weapons.” “It was very clear as a negotiator, what they were trying to do was to get us into a long, drawn out process with meetings and experts and something that would have taken time in order to do the third meeting,” one official said. The Iranians presented a five-page proposal in the third meeting, but it was “like Swiss cheese because there were a lot of holes that they were able to go through,” an official said. “They also gave us their needs for the next 10 years, and that was the first time that we were able to see what they plan to do with the different materials that they claim they wanted to produce,” the official continued. There was no short-term deal that would have been beneficial for the U.S. and the world, an official said. “It was very clear they were just trying to buy time in order to preserve whatever they could, to get past the term of President Trump, in order to get to a nuclear weapon,” the official said, “and if they wanted to do a peaceful nuclear program, or kind of a real deal, we offered them many ample opportunities to do that, and they kept getting in their own way, probably intentionally, in order not to do that.” According to a senior official, the Iranians are “clever people” who are motivated entirely by “consummat[ing] and bring[ing] to fruition the enrichment process.” It was the role of the negotiators to determine if a deal could be made. They came back and reported to the president that Iran was “basically playing games,” so a deal would be difficult. “We said, look, if you decide that you want to do diplomacy, we’ll push as hard as possible,” a senior official said. “We’ll get in a room. We’ll fight for every point that we can. But these guys, they just really were showing that, that they that they didn’t want to, that they weren’t willing to make the type of deal that President Trump would have been satisfied with.” The post Trump Administration Officials Reveal Why US Lost Faith in Diplomacy With Iran appeared first on The Daily Signal.

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill faces an ethics complaint after she asked Garden State residents to report on Immigration and Customs Enforcement to the state government. “In a seemingly unprecedented move, Governor Sherrill is using official state resources to coordinate the potential obstruction of federal immigration enforcement activities,” Curtis Schube, director of research and policy at the Center to Advance Security in America, told The Daily Signal in a statement on the complaint Tuesday. “Her administration created an official portal for members of the public to upload personal videos of ICE officials conducting their official duties.”  “This outrageous conduct is not in accordance with the rules of the New York Bar, nor is it appropriate for any legal professional or government official,” Schube added. “CASA is filing a bar complaint today and is hopeful that an investigation into this matter will be initiated immediately.” CASA filed a complaint Tuesday with the Attorney Grievance Committee of the New York Supreme Court, which investigates potential breaches in the Rules of Professional Conduct. According to the New York State Unified Court System’s registration, Sherrill first registered in May 2009 with the number 4719522 and has no disciplinary history. The Complaint The complaint, exclusively obtained by The Daily Signal, cites portions of the Rules of Professional Conduct, which state that a lawyer may face discipline for “illegal conduct that adversely reflects on the lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer,” or for “conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation.” The letter cites 8 U.S.C. Section 1324, which imposes up to a 10-year prison sentence or a fine on anyone who “conceals, harbors, or shields from detection, or attempts to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection,” an alien who “has come to, entered, or remains in the United States in violation of law.” Sherrill went on “The Daily Show” in January, outlining her plan to launch a portal for Garden State residents to report ICE activity. “If you see an ICE agent in the street, get your phone out,” she told the host and her audience. She announced that the state government would create a “portal” to allow people to “upload all their cell phone videos” to “alert people” to ICE’s presence. “Sherrill has taken the first step toward concealing illegal aliens in New Jersey by calling for people to video any ICE activity and to alert the New Jersey government via web portal,” the complaint states. “Alerting people can be for no other reason than to allow undocumented immigrants time to clear out of their location. The effort can be interpreted in no other way than to prevent ICE from detaining immigrants who are the subject of their search.” “This violates the explicit language of the federal criminal statute referenced above,” the complaint states. “It is ‘deceit[ful]’ to use the power of government to prevent the federal government from being able to perform their operations. Additionally, it is unbecoming of a lawyer to use her power under the law to undermine federal law.” The ICE Reporting Portal The portal, which Sherrill’s appointed Attorney General Jennifer Davenport launched last month, urges citizens to “report misconduct by federal agents.” The website presents a list of “concerning activity” including “uses of excessive force, warrantless searches or arrests, racial profiling, wrongful detentions, interference with voting, or other civil-rights violations.” The site claims that information submitted via the portal may be used as evidence in court, though it states that the attorney general may or may not take legal action based on the submissions. The attorney general’s office states that it does not intend for the portal “to replace reporting emergencies or crimes in your area to local law enforcement.” Department of Homeland Security’s Response “Alerting people to ICE operations puts the lives of the men and women of law enforcement in danger as they go after terrorists, vicious gangs and violent criminal rings,” Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Lauren Bis told The Daily Signal in a statement Tuesday. “Our law officers are facing a 1,300% increase in assaults, a 3200% in vehicle attacks, and an 8000% increase in death threats.” “Remember, New Jersey is the same state that allowed a criminal illegal alien onto American streets who killed a mother and 11-year-old daughter while drunk driving,” she added. “While Attorney General Jennifer Davenport continues to encourage agitators to obstruct law enforcement and releases pedophiles, rapists, gang members, and murderers onto New Jersey’s streets, our brave law enforcement will continue to risk their lives to arrest heinous criminals in New Jersey.” Justice Department Weighs In The Justice Department sued Sherrill last month, aiming to block her executive order directing state officials to block ICE raids on state property. “The Department has a zero-tolerance policy for violence against law enforcement and will hold offenders accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” a Justice Department spokesperson told The Daily Signal in a statement Tuesday. “Any official promoting anti-police rhetoric, encouraging reckless behavior, or obstructing lawful immigration operations should think twice before inciting further violence and putting federal agents in harm’s way.” Sherrill has labeled ICE a “Stasi-type force,” referring to the East German secret police force. Opposition to ICE ratcheted up a notch after the Department of Homeland Security ordered a surge of immigration enforcement agents to Minneapolis. Anti-ICE agitators organized to monitor immigration enforcement, with some training to directly interfere with ICE operations. In this context of heightened tensions, two activists died at the hands of ICE agents: Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Border czar Tom Homan then took charge of the efforts in Minneapolis and drew down federal forces. The Daily Signal reached out to the offices of the governor and the attorney general for comment, but did not receive a response by publication time. CASA NY Bar Complaint_Sherrill_final_2.25.26[14]Download The post Democrat Who Compared ICE to the Stasi Faces Ethics Complaint Over Program to Report Feds appeared first on The Daily Signal.

As top Trump administration officials descended on Capitol Hill Tuesday afternoon to update the Senate on Operation Epic Fury, Senators told The Daily Signal they’re considering a supplemental funding package to support U.S. military action against Iran. But some senators worry a supplemental funding fight could distract the Senate from other urgent priorities. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Oak., told the Daily Signal he would “absolutely” support a supplemental funding package to continue Operation Epic Fury after Tuesday’s closed-door briefing. ? Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefs press on the State Departments recent efforts to help Americans evacuate from the Middle East before briefing Senators in a closed door meeting. More to come… pic.twitter.com/fMzlQIOY72— Virginia Grace McKinnon (@virginiagmck) March 3, 2026 Congress recently passed the Fiscal Year 2026 Defense Appropriations Act in February which allocated over $830 billion to defense, but Congress might decide to pass more defense funding in light of the administration’s bold $1.5 trillion defense budget. Before the briefing, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., seemed uncertain about the need for supplemental funds. “Maybe yes,” Graham said. “We may need a supplemental to help our friends in Israel and to deal with the increased threats.” After the meeting, Graham seemed more certain. “I think there will be a supplemental. We’ll have to approve that,” he told reporters.   Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., told The Daily Signal, “We’ll do whatever we need to do here to make sure our military is supported.” Similarly, Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, told the Daily Signal that he would also support an Operation Epic Fury funding package, “If they need, absolutely.” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., told reporters he was almost certain Republicans would pursue a supplemental funding package. “I’m sure they’ll ask for supplemental appropriations,” said Murphy. “I don’t think they’ll get them.” “I’m more convinced now that this is going to be open ended and forever,” Murphy continued. “They clearly have no, they clearly seem fine with hard line elements being in control of the country, because they plan to permanently run air operations over the country.” Murphy claimed that behind closed doors the administration refused to take off the table ground operations. “This feels like a multi-trillion dollar open ended conflict with a very confusing and constantly shifting set of goals,” he concluded.   Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., was skeptical. He said that while he expects they [Republicans] will come forward with a request for additional funding, he is unsure if he would support it. “Before I will support additional funding, I expect us to have an open hearing,” Coons told the press coming out of the closed-door classified hearing. War Powers Showdown: Will Capitol Hill Pull the Plug on Epic Fury or Power It Through for Israel?If the war power resolutions pass, the U.S. could be required to halt Operation Epic Fury in Iran. Both chambers of Congress are set to vote this week on separate bipartisan war… pic.twitter.com/rcLlMPTUsM— The Daily Signal (@DailySignal) March 3, 2026 Given the president’s repeated comments regarding America’s ability to continue the Iran campaign, however, the upper chamber might face more pressing issues than a supplemental defense funding package. The Department of Homeland Security remains shut down. Democrats are demanding reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement as a precondition for reopening the government. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., told The Daily Signal her focus is still on funding DHS. “My focus right now is getting that funded, and then certainly I’m open to turning my attention to other things,” Britt said in reference to the DHS funding lapse. “Their mission, is to keep Americans safe, and yet this body has yet to act on that.”  “I think it’s imperative that we fund DHS now,” said Graham. “I think the likelihood of a terrorist attack against the United States is very, very high… because of the threat level coming from Iran.” But the Republican voting base, however, have their eyes on passing the SAVE America Act, an election integrity measure that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and nationwide voter ID. ?We can’t let what’s happening in Iran distract us from the need to:(1) put the SAVE America Act on the Senate floor, (2) make filibustering senators speak, and (3) stay on it until it passes Share if you agree?— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) March 2, 2026 Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, one of the Senate’s main drivers of the SAVE America Act, is warning that the operation in Iran should not distract the Senate. The post Senate Eyes Supplemental Funding for Iran, But What About SAVE America Act? appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Ohio’s pro-abortion Reproductive Freedom Amendment, passed in 2023, has now been used to block a state law requiring the humane burial or cremation of aborted children. Last week, Ohio’s First District Court of Appeals upheld a ruling against Ohio’s SB 27, which mandated fetal remains be buried or cremated. The appeals court concluded “that the plain language of the Reproductive Freedom Amendment constrains the State’s ability to regulate all phases of an abortion, including conduct occurring after the procedure.” That ruling follows a 2021 decision from the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas preliminarily blocking the law, as well as a 2025 permanent injunction. Ohio Right to Life Executive Director Carrie Snyder describes that court as “the most extreme liberal court that [abortion advocates] can find.” What the Law Addressed While abortion advocates bringing suit against SB 27 focused on the 2023 ballot initiative, pro-life groups focused on the law itself. “The court’s decision to strike down Ohio’s fetal remains law removes a basic standard of human dignity from state policy,” Peter Range, a senior fellow for the Center for Christian Virtue, told The Daily Signal. “With this ruling, the remains of a child aborted at 10, 15, or even 20 weeks may now be treated under Ohio’s ‘infectious waste’ regulations—no differently than other medical waste,” he also warned. Snyder declared it “a tragedy when a human body is treated like trash,” explaining that the law was “a way to address that issue and didn’t burden a woman approaching this decision at all.” Doomed by Lawsuits From the Start Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed SB 27 into law on Dec. 30, 2020, with lawsuits quickly coming before the law even went into effect. The February 25 ruling from the First District Court of Appeals made clear that the Reproductive Freedom Amendment factored into their decision. The decision also read that “the voters of Ohio intended to create a separate, independent state constitutional basis for protecting abortion and abortion providers from State intervention, other than that explicitly allowed by the Amendment. In this regard, the Reproductive Freedom Amendment fills the constitutional void left by Dobbs [v. Jackson]. Nothing in this history or the rationale for the Amendment suggests that the voters intended to excise post-abortion conduct from its protections. Rather, the fact that Ohio voters mobilized quickly to counteract a decision of the United States Supreme Court sends a strong message of their desire to protect reproductive rights.” A press release from the American Civil Liberties highlighted the following passage, “Ohio voters said what they meant. The state may not burden, penalize, or discriminate against those who have an abortion and those who assist them in obtaining one.” Nevertheless, concerns remain about what voters were actually considering. Snyder pointed out that the amendment was not a matter of making abortion “completely legal or completely illegal,” or about medical care for concerns such as miscarriages. “That was not what they were voting on, that was what they thought they were voting on,” Snyder said. “As the court explained, the Reproductive Freedom Amendment protects conduct that occurs before, during, and after a procedural abortion,” countered Jessie Hill, cooperating attorney for the ACLU of Ohio. “While this law has not been in effect for years, today’s ruling will allow our clients to focus on providing essential health care without further interference from the state. We celebrate this ruling as yet another testament to the power of Ohio’s new Reproductive Freedom Amendment, and the first affirmative interpretation from an appellate court.” Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio Region, which was also involved in the case, directed The Daily Signal to a statement from their medical director, Dr. Sharon Liner. “We’re pleased that the court upheld the injunction blocking the cruel burial and cremation law. Abortion is essential healthcare and this law was nothing more than an opportunity to shame and stigmatize our patients. Our focus remains on the health, safety, and dignity of our patients,” Liner said. Reproductive Freedom Amendment Plays a Role Range shared with The Daily Signal that the decision to strike down the fetal remains law was expected. “This outcome is not surprising in light of the 2023 abortion amendment. Ohioans were told the amendment would not eliminate commonsense health and safety standards. Yet we are now seeing laws struck down that were designed to reflect basic respect for human life and to ensure accountability in the abortion industry,” he pointed out. The amendment could be used against other pro-life laws. “The abortion advocates are using this vote from 2023, basically as a two-by-four,” Snyder said. “Voters were not given a drop down list of things that they wanted or didn’t want as far as abortion law, so every single thing that comes up in the category whatsoever, they are pointing to this amendment.” “I do fear that we are just seeing the tip of the iceberg now,” Snyder added. The amendment has further ramifications beyond laws being struck down. Both Range and Snyder expressed concerns about Ohio seeing an increase in abortions in 2025. Despite passing such an amendment, Ohio remains a red state. That’s something of a silver lining, especially compared to neighboring states like Michigan. “If we compare to Michigan, which passed a similar amendment, and they have a very radical pro-abortion majority in the governor and legislature, and so they knocked down every restriction as fast as they could,” Snyder said. “So I think in Ohio, we’re fortunate that we have pro-life majority in the legislature, we have a pro-life governor, we’re able to muffle the impact at least in the short-term.” She also referred to the Ohio Supreme Court as a “much more favorable court” than the lower courts. . The post Ohio’s Abortion Amendment Used to Block Fetal Remains Law appeared first on The Daily Signal.