Editor’s note: This week, we’re reprinting some of our best stories from the past year. In this piece, originally published in October, Leif Le Mahieu reports on a bombshell report exposing how FEMA denied hurricane aid to Trump supporters — a scandal originally exposed by his reporting.  A bombshell report released Tuesday by the Department of Homeland Security revealed that FEMA’s targeting of Trump supporters was not an isolated incident, contradicting testimony by former President Joe Biden’s FEMA chief. The DHS Privacy Office said that an investigation into FEMA found that the agency has been tracking the political beliefs of conservative disaster survivors since at least September 2021. The probe was launched by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in response to a Daily Wire report exposing a FEMA employee for instructing her team to “avoid homes advertising Trump” in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton. Those instructions, given by a FEMA employee named Marn’i Washington who was fired after The Daily Wire report, told relief workers canvassing Lake Placid, Florida, to skip the homes of people with Trump yard signs or flags. In response to this report, Deanne Criswell, who led FEMA under Biden, claimed that the incident was isolated and did not reflect the agency’s standard practices. However, this political weaponization was “not isolated,” the DHS report found, saying that it had “uncovered evidence that this also occurred during other disasters across the nation.” Since Hurricane Ida in September 2021, FEMA employees have made notes about the political beliefs of disaster survivors like “angry political rant,” “Sign states I’m a bitter gun owner clinging to my religion,” “Homeowner had a sign stating… this is trump country,” and “[P]ro gun sign.” Other notes left in the FEMA system included statements like “There was a political flyer so I didn’t leave FEMA brochure” and “… a lot of explicit political flags, posters, etc. ‘F*** Joe Biden’ ‘MAGA 2024’ ‘Joe Biden Sucks’ ‘Trump 2024’ We do not recommend anyone visiting this location.” “The federal government was withholding aid against Americans in crisis based on their political beliefs — this should horrify every American, regardless of political persuasion,” said DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. “For years, FEMA employees under the Biden Administration intentionally delayed much-needed aid to Americans suffering from natural disasters on purely political grounds.” DHS said that Noem had referred the incident in Lake Placid to the Department of Justice for further investigation and potential prosecution. The DHS report found that FEMA violated the Privacy Act of 1974 by collecting and storing records tied to protected speech. The investigation “exposed widespread gaps in FEMA’s policies, processes, and procedures, resulting in systemic violations that unfairly targeted individuals across the country,” the report found. “The DHS Privacy Office examined screenshots of the tool that FEMA canvassers use to collect information from disaster survivors and data extracted from the tool’s database,” the report said.  “The tool’s information indicated that canvassers included information related to political party affiliation, campaign signs, and other information related to freedom of expression.” Since September 2021, FEMA employees and contractors flagged things like “gun signage” 72 times, “Trump” 15 times, “firearms” five times, “political” three times, and “Biden” and “NRA” twice, respectively. Other examples of things logged into FEMA’s tracking system were notes like “angry political rant,” “Sign states I’m a bitter gun owner clinging to my religion,” “Homeowner had a sign stating… this is trump country.” These findings were all part of the investigation Noem launched into FEMA in response to Washington’s guidance in Florida. The report cites The Daily Wire, noting that it was “the first news outlet to report these allegations.” The findings appear to contradict FEMA Administrator Criswell’s November 19 testimony to the House Oversight Committee. “We are working with the inspector general to determine whether or not this is broader than this, but the evidence that I have seen so far shows that this was an isolated incident, and it has not gone beyond what this one employee did,” she said at the time. The Florida incident prompted actions from dozens of elected officials and investigations from the state of Tennessee, the state of Florida, the House Homeland Security Committee, the House Oversight Committee, an internal FEMA investigation, America First Legal, the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General, and the Office of Special Counsel. It was also referenced in an executive order from Trump ordering FEMA to be dramatically reformed.

A shocking video confronting apparent fraudsters seems to expose even more Somali-linked fraud in Democrat Gov. Tim Walz’s Minnesota. Journalist Nick Shirley on Friday posted 42 minutes of video footage from an investigation into the fraud, largely focused on government-funded childcare operations that seemingly care for no children. “Here is the full 42 minutes of my crew and I exposing Minnesota fraud, this might be my most important work yet,” Shirley captioned the video post. “We uncovered over $110,000,000 in ONE day.” “It’s time to hold these corrupt politicians and fraudsters accountable,” he added. “We ALL work way too hard and pay too much in taxes for this to be happening, the fraud must be stopped.” In one jaw-dropping moment, Shirley and a resident named David, who’s been investigating the fraud for years, show up to a childcare center that seems completely empty. The building has no windows, and the word “learning” on the sign is misspelled. A man who’s lived in the area since 2017 told Shirley he’s never seen a single child at the center, and said that if Walz is to blame, the governor should be jailed and held accountable. ? HOLY CRAP! A Minnesota man who’s been living next to a Somali “daycare center” for eight years says he’s never seen a SINGLE CHILD there “None! Not at all… and I’ve been here since 2017!” “They’re stealing the money!” He even called on Tim Walz to be JAILED over this. I… pic.twitter.com/Zo1ZHlOaU3 — Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) December 26, 2025 In the video, David tells Shirley that, per public records, some of these childcare centers have received millions of dollars from the state and federal government through a program called the Child Care Assistance Program, or CCAP. The program is run by the state, but there is federal funding included. Another supposed daycare center the team visited on a weekday was closed up. David said he’s never seen “a single child” at the location in nine years. The center has received millions of taxpayer dollars. Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships “I’m not sure, I don’t know,” one woman wearing a hijab tells the team when she’s asked if she’s ever seen children at the childcare center. In another alarming moment, clipped by journalist Nick Sortor, two women in hijabs and face-coverings are confronted about why there is only one child at another taxpayer-funded supposed center. They yell at David and Shirley, but provide no answers. Notably, Shirley is also told he can’t enroll his son at the daycare and can’t view the area. One of the women even tells Shirley that she’s afraid of him because of his “color.” Shirley is white. ? BREAKING: Elon Musk just called for the PROSECUTION of Tim Walz for the rampant taxpayer funded FRAUD in the Somali community Walz has worked to COVER UP this fraud at the expense of the American people in order to buy votes LOCK HIM UP! pic.twitter.com/CZWDZ3UUx8 — Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) December 27, 2025 The unfathomable amount of fraud, some of which is seemingly exposed in the video, sparked billionaire Elon Musk to call for the prosecution of Walz. Prosecute @GovTimWalz https://t.co/oSQprdo292 — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 27, 2025 A jaw-dropping press conference held earlier this month confirmed that $9 billion – or potentially more – of taxpayer money could have been stolen during Walz’s tenure. As outlined by federal prosecutor Joseph Thompson, 14 taxpayer-funded programs in particular were found to be rife with fraud since 2018. Those programs cost $18 billion, and Thompson said it’s possible that half of that, or more, could have been fraudulently claimed. “I think we’re an outlier in a bad way,” Thompson said of Minnesota. “You don’t see fraud on this scale in other states. … Every day we look under a rock and find a new $50 million fraud scheme. That shouldn’t be the case in a state of our size. Certainly other states have problems with frauds, but I think our problem is unique.” Thompson said Minnesota earned a reputation for being, essentially, easy to rip off, which sparked what’s called “fraud tourism” — or people moving to the state to commit fraud. Fraudsters, he said, would create companies entirely dedicated to fraud, which is different from up-charging for services, which is typical in Medicaid fraud. Walz, who’s unsurprisingly in the hot seat over the scandal, says Thompson is engaging in “sensationalism” and says there’s “no evidence” the scope is $9 billion or more. View the full video, below: ? Here is the full 42 minutes of my crew and I exposing Minnesota fraud, this might be my most important work yet. We uncovered over $110,000,000 in ONE day. Like it and share it around like wildfire! Its time to hold these corrupt politicians and fraudsters accountable We ALL… pic.twitter.com/E3Penx2o7a — Nick shirley (@nickshirleyy) December 26, 2025 Related: Tim Walz Gets More Bad News From Feds After Massive Fraud Scandal Exposed

Editor’s note: This week, we’re reprinting some of our best stories from the past year. In this piece, originally published in November, Daily Wire White House Correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan hits the road for some good old fashioned football with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. *** BOSTON—On a brisk November morning, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy shipped up to Boston with two goals: making his forgotten Merchant Mariners remember who they were, and bringing home the Secretaries’ Cup. That’s the trophy that goes to the victor of an annual college football game that pits the Merchant Mariners against the Coast Guard, a smaller but beloved version of the annual Army-Navy game. Fans, alumni, and family of the “Kings Point” mariners and the Coast Guard travel from all over the country to support their teams. This year, Duffy and Homeland Secretary Kristi Noem — whose agency includes the Coast Guard — joined their teams for the final showdown of the season. They had a bet: whoever lost would host the other team at their agency back in the nation’s capitol. It was a rare non-political event attended for the two high-profile politicians, who were there to cheer on their teams and talk trash to each other. “Our Merchant Marine Academy, they’re excited to play on a on a big venue like this,” Duffy told The Daily Wire ahead of the game. “And sometimes they don’t get the attention that they deserve … they’re critical as part of America’s infrastructure and making sure that we can defend ourselves.” “The Merchant Marine Academy, our young men and women go out and make sure we have the capability of supporting the military in doing sea lifts, making sure products are moving, supplies are moving, and our midshipmen provide those services,” he explained. The Merchant Marine Academy is housed under the Department of Transportation, which formerly also housed the United States Coast Guard. The “Coasties” were moved under Homeland Security’s umbrella in 2003. But the reshuffling did nothing to the football rivalry, which dates back to 1949. The Daily Wire spent the day with Duffy as he wandered around Fenway Park, even down to the locker room, where he aggressively hyped up the mariners before they headed out onto the field. “You guys have more heart, more grit,” Duffy told the animated mariners. “So please go kick some Coast Guard ass today!” Many of the midshipmen who were at the game were delighted to chat with the transportation secretary, who spent a big chunk of his time hanging out in the stands with them. “Oh, yeah,” Edward Lippert told The Daily Wire, asked if he was a Duffy fan. “He’s the man. He’s the man.” “I love that guy,” added Christian Meyers. “I can’t wait to see him.” The two young men, who are both seniors at the academy, responded emphatically when asked what it means to them to be mariners. Meyers will go into Navy aviation after graduation, and Lippert will be sailing on his third mates license in the maritime industry. “Oh man, it’s everything,” said Lippert. “I mean, it’s how cargo moves around the world right? World needs mariners.” “Pretty much everyone here will graduate with a license in the US Coast Guard that’s capable of operating any boat or vessel in the American fleet,” he added.”We move cargo, whatever it be, cars, containers from point A to point B. We’re what puts food on your shelves.” The second mariner conceded that without their work, American lives would be significantly impacted. “It’d be really hard to live,” he said, asked where Americans would be without them. “Costs would be insane. I mean, there would be no food in supermarkets. There’d be nothing. There’d be nothing without us.” Duffy feels that the Merchant Marine Academy has been not only forgotten but downright neglected by other secretaries of transportation, including his predecessor, Pete Buttigieg (“Boot-edge-edge,” as Duffy chuckled aside to his kids). “They’ve been shunned,” Duffy said of the mariners. “They haven’t had the investments. They have one of the most beautiful campuses, but no one has  reinvigorated it. No one has invested in it.” When Duffy first arrived in Kings Point, New York to visit the Merchant Marine Academy, he found out that these midshipmen had gone four months without hot water. A green energy effort brought in an electric boiler that didn’t work and ultimately led to the midshipmen going without water for months, he said with a shake of his head. “So they’re taking cold showers. They have mold in in their dorms. Their dishwasher broke. They didn’t have regular plates and silverware. They had plastic plates, plastic silverware.” When he brought it up to the midshipmen, he expected that they would be angry. Instead, he joked, they beat their chests and were proud of their tough situation: “I said, ‘No hot water?’ And they’re like, ‘ROAR!! You’re damn right we did! No hot water!’” He also found out that President Joe Biden’s administration removed a mural of Jesus Christ on the water from the academy and put it in the basement. “Shameful,” said Duffy. “It’s been in the academy for over 50 years!” “I said that’s it, we are going to we are going to resurrect the painting of Jesus on the water out of the basement and put him back in his place of prominence. And when I mentioned it to the to the midshipman, they lost their minds.” He doesn’t have to “bring faith back to the academy,” he said, questioned about the move: “These are faithful young men and women.” One way that he’s boosting morale is by telling the mariners that the “black sheep” is their mascot, leaning into the idea that they are the “black sheep” of the academies and need to fight to reclaim their identity. Duffy himself was sporting a Merchant Mariners sweatshirt with the black sheep on it, as were his daughters and son who attended the game with him. “I just I think it’s wrong that we have a great American academy with great young American men and women, that we don’t respect them,” Duffy shared. “They are the black sheep of all the academies, right? And sometimes when you feel a little beaten, you’re an underdog, you come back, have a little more heart, a little more energy, a little more fight.” “You can see we have our black sheep shirts on,” he added. “And we embrace it and we still kick ass. We still have grit. We still crush it like what’s going to happen today on the football field here at Fenway.” The mariners did indeed crush the Coast Guard that day in the very final seconds of the game. Duffy joined them on the field, holding the trophy high above his head as he cheered, exuberantly celebrating with the young men — and even jokingly trash talking Noem, who didn’t come down to the field for the Merchant Marine Academy victory. “Well done man,” he told the mariners as they left the field, shaking their hands and slapping them on the back. “Thank you for fighting! Well done.”

The newly-named Trump-Kennedy Center is not letting a performer off the hook for bailing on a concert over politics. In a letter, the president of the Trump-Kennedy Center, Ric Grenell, tells the jazz musician who pulled out of a Christmas concert at the last minute over the center’s “Trump” name-change that it will seek $1 million in damages for the abrupt cancellation. “Your dismal ticket sales and lack of donor support, combined with your last-minute cancellation has cost us considerably,” Grenell said in a letter to musician Chuck Redd. “This is your official notice that we will seek $1 million in damages from you for this political stunt.” “This institution remains dedicated to excellence and accessibility for generations to come, and we will not yield to the pressure tactics being directed at us from political performers on our stages,” Grenell said. “True artists perform for everyone regardless of the political affiliation of audience members.” Redd was scheduled to host the “Christmas Eve Jazz Jam” on December 24 — a show he’s performed annually since 2006. He pulled out days before the performance, citing Trump’s name addition to the iconic center. He has admitted that he cancelled the concert because the center’s board voted to change the name from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to the Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. “When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert,” Redd told the Associated Press. Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships Roma Daravi, the top spokeswoman for the center, slammed Redd for his “selfish” and “intolerant” decision to pull out of the performance. “Any artist cancelling their show at the Trump Kennedy Center over political differences isn’t courageous or principled—they are selfish, intolerant, and have failed to meet the basic duty of a public artist: to perform for all people,” Daravi told The Daily Wire. “Art is a shared cultural experience meant to unite, not exclude,” Daravi said. “The Trump-Kennedy Center is a true bipartisan institution that welcomes artists and patrons from all backgrounds—great art transcends politics, and America’s cultural center remains committed to presenting popular programming that inspires and resonates with all audiences.” Grenell said in his letter to Redd that the renaming reflected Trump’s “extraordinary efforts to save this national treasure,” adding, “Trump’s decisive intervention that rescued this historic building from almost certain destruction.” Notably, as highlighted by The Daily Wire, the center broke the all-time attendance record soon after Trump took over the center, despite criticism from the Left. Its leadership also says it inherited a center in dire financial situation. READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Kennedy Center Is $40 Million In Debt, Will Make Major Cuts Grenell similarly said Redd’s abrupt cancelation “is classic intolerance and very costly to a non-profit Arts institution.” “Regrettably, your action surrenders to the sad bullying tactics employed by certain elements on the left, who have sought to intimidate artists into boycotting performances at our national cultural center,” he added. The president of the center also took a jab at Redd’s apparent declining attendance over the years. “[I]t is worth noting that attendance for your Jazz Jam had been lagging considerably behind our other Christmas and holiday offerings, which have drawn strong crowds and enthusiastic response,” he wrote. “The contrast between the public’s lack of interest in your show with the success we are experiencing under our new chairman is drastic,” Grenell continued. “Our innovative KC Speakeasy—an intimate rooftop after-hours venue featuring live jazz—has consistently sold out, attracting diverse audiences and revitalizing the genre in exciting ways. The most avant-garde and well-regarded performers in your genre will still perform regularly, and unlike you, they’ll do it to sold out crowds regardless of their political leanings.” Related: Kennedy Center Breaks All-Time Attendance Record After Lib Meltdown Over Trump

There’s a secret weapon tucked inside “Trump Accounts” that gives each member of the coming generation the chance to have a six-figure investment account by the time they’re 18. Not only will every American child born between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028 receive an account loaded with $1,000, courtesy of President Donald Trump, congressional Republicans, and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. But parents and their employers will be able to make contributions that would super-charge its growth. This month, the Treasury Department pulled back the curtain on how Trump Accounts are designed to work. With the rules now clear, The Daily Wire crunched the numbers to find out what an 18-year-old would have today if they’d received a Trump Account when they were born in 2007.  If left untouched, the accounts would be worth nearly six times as much, the financial analysis found, leaving each child to enter adulthood with $5,907. With supplemental investments, however, they’d be set with accounts well into the six figures. To encourage participation, the Trump administration made employer contributions tax-exempt. If a parent’s employer added $2,500 to the account each year, half the allowed contribution, that account would be worth $183,933. And most dramatically, a child whose Trump Account received the maximum $5,000 per year would be sitting on $361,959 today.  The analysis showcases how the administration empowers the next generation to unlock compound investing, a financial concept that Albert Einstein once called the eighth wonder of the world. Compound investing is like a snowball rolling down a hill. The $1,000 deposit is the snowball, and as it grows, the returns start adding their own “snow,” making the ball bigger and bigger over time. The money isn’t just sitting there, it’s actively making more money, and that money makes even more money. There is rising concern about the financial prospects for young Americans as costs rise in the country. During the Biden administration, costs of goods increased by roughly 20% over four years. The Trump administration has vowed to tackle affordability issues, and these accounts are part of that strategy, with a top Trump official saying the accounts give each kid “a piece of the American economy.” “It is a trust fund, a piece of the American economy for every child that they will be able to take out when they are 18, or they could convert it to a more IRA-type program,”explained Trump’s Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The Trump administration says the accounts will be professionally invested in a low-cost index fund that tracks the overall United States stock market. Once the child turns 18, they will have the option to transition the account into a traditional IRA, setting themselves up with financial stability before they even enter the workforce.  The Daily Wire simulated the portfolio assuming the investments were made in the S&P 500, which is an index of the 500 largest companies in America. Historically, investments in the S&P 500 have earned dividends, regular cash payments from companies’ profits. The Daily Wire treated this portfolio as if those dividends would be reinvested, allowing the investment to grow over time through both stock price gains and compounding dividend income. If Trump Accounts had existed for the past 65 years, and a child received the same annual $5,000 contributions from 1959 to 2024, the account invested in the S&P 500 would have grown to nearly $45 million. Left untouched, the $1,000 deposit would have compounded to $721,614 over that period.  But the path wouldn’t have always been smooth. In 2008 alone, when the economy crashed, the portfolio would have dropped 37%, falling from roughly $8 million to $5 million in a single year, before taking about five years to fully recover. Yet the long arc would still have been overwhelmingly positive, in the sixteen years since the recession, the S&P 500 has posted gains in 14 of them with only two down years. World renowned investor Warren Buffett says, “Despite some severe interruptions, our country’s economic progress has been breathtaking. Our unwavering conclusion: Never bet against America.” The idea behind Trump Accounts originated with Altimeter Capital CEO Brad Gerstner, who has been talking about the policy for years. “How about we give a $2,000 stipend at birth that people cannot withdraw that compounds the future of America,” Gerstner said in 2021. “I would love to see a national savings account in this country where everybody gets to participate in the value creation.”  Gerstner first pitched the concept to the Biden administration, but it never materialized. Under Trump, the concept was folded into the One Big Beautiful Bill.  Speaking from the Oval Office earlier this month, President Trump announced that billionaire Michael Dell will contribute $6.25 billion to accelerate the rollout. Dell’s funding will support children ages 10 and under who do not qualify for the one-time Treasury Department deposit. The funds will be available to children within ZIP codes where the median household income is under $150,000, a move Gerstner predicted back in May. “I suspect that philanthropists may contribute more to the Invest America accounts of kids whose parents earn less,” Gerstner said.  Bessent added that the Treasury Department is already in discussions with many philanthropists and foundations about additional contributions. More details on how families can open these accounts are expected in the coming weeks, ahead of the program’s official launch on July 5, 2026.