All Together Now

 

Going Full Spartacus: Democrats Hold Chest-Thumping Press Conferences To Fuel Anti-ICE Rage

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

“Say her name.” From Portland to Philadelphia, the mantra is being used by politicians to fuel the anger over the shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis. While many of us have noted that the shooting appears to fall within the guidelines set by the Supreme Court for the justified use of lethal force, there is an effort to make Good the personification of a “resistance movement.”

Across the country, Democrats are holding “I am Spartacus” moments like a low-budget casting call for B-grade actors, chest-thumping demands for everything from the defunding of ICE to the arrest of law enforcement officers. Sen Cory Booker (D., N.J.) was widely ridiculed for his own such moment years ago. However, he found that while most people found his self-aggrandizement cringeworthy, many longed for such demonstrations.

From Portland to Philadelphia, Democratic leaders are engaging in performative press conferences to try to outdo each other in declaring the shooting of Renee Good “murder” or declaring a “war” with the federal government over the enforcement of immigration policies.

The tone was set almost immediately after the shooting by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who not only declared the officer a murderer but called claims of self-defense “bllsh*t” and told ICE, “get the f–k out” of the city.

When many of us denounced his conduct, he mocked his critics by apologizing if his profanity “offended their Disney princess ears.”

Frey seemed to trigger a race to the bottom. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and others rushed to the nearest camera to condemn the officer and fuel the rage.  Democratic politicians seemed to struggle to find ways to up the ante with new levels of profanity or escalated threats. Rep. Dan Goldman (D., NY) is facing a serious challenge from a Mamdani-endorsed socialist in the primary and has fought to out-rage the competition.

Goldman not only called for the arrest of the officer but also moved to strip all ICE officers of immunity. Goldman is, of course, protected by immunity as a member of Congress and, as an heir to the Levi-Strauss fortune, can afford any litigation. However, he wants to strip protections for law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day. It seems that no price is too great to secure Goldman a third term.

In Portland, Mayor Keith Wilson and Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, expressed outrage over ICE being in the city after a shooting. It did not seem to matter that the wounded were two suspected Tren de Aragua gang associates who were shot after allegedly trying to run over ICE officers.

Portland Police Chief Bob Day finally confirmed that Luis David Nico Moncada and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras are Venezuelan criminal illegal aliens with ties to TdA. He admitted that the Portland Police Department hesitated to disclose the suspected gang connection because it did not want to be accused of “historic injustice of victim blaming” by law

Send Help

 

Noem: DHS Sending "Hundreds More" Federal Agents To Minneapolis

Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times,

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in an interview on Jan. 11 that “hundreds more” federal officers will be sent to Minneapolis on Jan. 11 and Jan. 12 to carry out immigration-related operations in the city.

“We’re sending more officers today and tomorrow, they’ll arrive, there'll be hundreds more, in order to allow our ICE and our Border Patrol individuals that are working in Minneapolis to do so safely,” Noem told Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

DHS recently sent 2,000 federal immigration agents to the city. Noem said the operation is needed to go after illegal immigrant criminals in the Twin Cities area amid allegations of widespread fraud involving federal entitlement benefits.

Protests erupted after a Jan. 7 incident in which an ICE officer fatally shot a protester as she hit him with her car in an apparent attempt to flee.

Local Democrats, including Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, have criticized Noem and ICE for the shooting and suggested that the federal government cease immigration operations in the city. Frey and Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) said in separate interviews on Jan. 11 that state authorities should be included in the shooting investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.

“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiassed investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw—what they think happened,” Smith said on ABC’s “This Week.”

Frey told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Jan. 11 that local officials should be involved, saying: “Let’s have the investigation in the hands of someone that isn’t biased.”

The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot the protester in her car, saying that he was protecting himself and fellow agents. Video footage of the incident, which occurred in Minneapolis on Jan. 7, shows a woman in an SUV parked across the road and blocking traffic while honking her horn. Another video shows officers telling the woman to get out of the vehicle. She then lurches the vehicle forward, hitting an officer, in an apparent attempt to drive off, and he fires his gun, hitting her.

In response, Noem wrote on Jan. 11 an accompanying post on X that what happened in Minneapolis was a “domestic terror attack” targeting ICE agents and a “direct consequence of sanctuary politicians, like Tim Walz and Jacob Frey, who constantly demonize and vilify our brave officers.” She included video footage of similar comments to CNN.

“Sanctuary politicians are allowing situations around the country to become volatile, they’re not doing their jobs, and they haven’t for years,” Noem said. “In the interest of public safety I would encourage them to grow up.”

Noem and DHS have said that attacks on ICE agents have increased by 1,300 percent, with vehicular attacks increasing by 3,200 percent, on a year-over-year basis. In October 2025, a man armed with a rifle killed two ICE detainees at a federal office in Texas before shooting and killing himself.

The officer involved in the Minneapolis shooting was doxxed by people online and has been receiving death threats, according to White House border czar Tom Homan, who said in a Jan. 10 interview that the threats have extended to his family members.

Anti-ICE demonstrations erupted on Jan. 9 as a demonstration turned into a riot, with people throwing rocks, ice, and other objects at federal officers. Thousands of people marched in Minneapolis on Jan. 10 in response to the shooting.

Truckin

 

DOT Strips California Of $160 Million Over Foreign Truckers

By John Gallagher of FreightWaves

A showdown between the U.S. Department of Transportation and the State of California reached a breaking point on Wednesday after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will withhold approximately $160 million in safety program money from the state.

The move follows California’s failure to meet a January 5 deadline to cancel more than 17,000 commercial truck driver’s licenses that Duffy asserts were unlawfully issued by the state to foreign truckers.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles announced in late December that it would delay the cancellation until March 6, but FMCSA did not agree to the extension.

“It’s reckoning day for [Governor] Gavin Newsom and California,” Duffy stated in a press release announcing a final determination letter that was sent to Newsom and the DMV.

“Our demands were simple: follow the rules, revoke the unlawfully-issued licenses to dangerous foreign drivers, and fix the system so this never happens again. Gavin Newsom has failed to do so – putting the needs of illegal immigrants over the safety of the American people.

“While Gavin may not care about protecting you and your family on our roads, the Trump Administration does. We’re pulling this funding to ensure federal tax dollars don’t fund this charade.”

A nationwide audit issued by FMCSA last summer of non-domiciled CDLs – which allow individuals who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents to obtain commercial licenses – uncovered what government officials called a “systemic collapse” in California, where licenses were allegedly issued with expiration dates years beyond a driver’s lawful presence in the U.S.

FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs emphasized that the agency would not compromise on the removal of these drivers from the road.

“Federal regulations are clear: states must correct safety deficiencies on a schedule mutually agreed upon by the agency, and California failed to meet its commitment,” Barrs stated. “We will not accept a corrective plan that knowingly leaves thousands of drivers holding noncompliant licenses behind the wheel of 80,000-pound trucks in open defiance of federal safety regulations.”

The $160 million penalty marks the first year of potential sanctions. Under federal law, if California continues to defy the FMCSA’s Final Determination, the amount withheld could double in the second year.

“We strongly disagree with the federal government’s decision to withhold vital transportation funding from California – their action jeopardizes public safety because these funds are critical for maintaining and improving the roadways we all rely on every day,” California DMV Public Affairs Deputy Director Eva Spiegel told FreightWaves in an email statement.

“The DMV is fully compliant with state and federal regulations and had engaged in positive conversations with FMCSA and DMV about extending the January 5 cancellation date to allow additional time for FMCSA to review the department’s commercial driver’s license program.”

The crackdown is expected to further tighten capacity in a West Coast freight market already grappling with shifts in regulatory policy. FreightWaves has previously reported on the potential for capacity crunches as thousands of drivers – many of whom have been integral to spot market operations – are forced out of service.

Todd Spencer, president of the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association, said the crackdown on non-domiciled CDLs is overdue. “The days of exploiting cheap labor on the basis of false ‘driver shortage’ claims are over,” Spencer said in a press statement in response to DOT’s latest announcement.

“For too long, loopholes in this program have allowed unqualified drivers onto our highways, putting professional truckers and the motoring public at risk.”

Something Big Is Happening

 

AOC Joins Top Dems In Abrupt Pivot Against 'Antisemitism'

A synchronized burst of pro-Israel social media messaging from the Democratic Party's most ardent foot soldiers is raising eyebrows, as even their most progressive members are taking on 'antisemitism'.

For example, here's AOC - a vocal critic of Israel, slamming Hamas supporters protesting in a Jewish neighborhood as a "disgusting and antisemitic thing to do."

Other notables include NY AG Letitia James, NY Gov. Kathy Hochul, NY Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, and others.

"Guys, something is happening," X user Clandestine wrote in a post, accompanied by screenshots of some of the highest-ranking Democratic lawmakers from the land making the pivot from pro-Islam to pro-Judaism and anti-Hamas. As Clandestine noted, "They are getting in front of something."

"All the pro-Islam Democrats are all the sudden, in unison, posting pro-Judaism and anti-Hamas posts, after their followers have been screaming "free Palestine" all day every day for years," they continued.

"My first thought was that they know some form of terrorist attack or riots in the Jewish community are coming, and they are trying to disassociate before the violence. Or maybe it's just polling related. Or maybe related to Iran. I have no idea. But they are up to something," they wrote in a separate post.

Another X user by the handle Saggezza Eterna pointed out, "The synchronized messaging from the Democrat hierarchy signals abject panic. They realize their alignment with the mob has become a political suicide pact for 2026. They are desperately sanitizing their record. However, attacking Tucker Carlson constitutes a massive strategic error. You are validating the establishment's attempt to purge the only effective anti-war voice on our side. Do not let them manipulate you into fratricide. Focus your fire. The enemy is the machine portrayed in those screenshots. Tucker is the one dismantling it."

Tim Walz' Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan Retaliated Against Whistleblowers

 

Minneapolis Mafia Madness

 

MN Lawmakers Say Fraud Whistleblowers Were Threatened With Retaliation

"Officials within the administration of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz actively enabled at least some of the state’s estimated $9 billion in social services fraud by suppressing fraud reports, retaliating against whistleblowers and changing protocols to mask criminal behavior according to Republican lawmakers who testified before Congress this week. "

The representatives also asserted that whistleblowers (and potential whistleblowers) have been threatened with retaliation from MN Democrats who would make sure whistleblowers lost their jobs, their homes, they’d be blacklisted from new jobs and their "children would be tracked". 

State Reps. Walter Hudson, Marion Rarick, and Kristin Robbins are members of their legislature’s committee on fraud prevention, which has been investigating some of the same instances of fraud that have captured the national spotlight in the past month.

All three of them were invited to testify at the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s first of at least two scheduled hearings on the rampant social services fraud that led Walz to withdraw his bid for reelection in 2026.  

Rarick in particular spoke about the pressure and opposition whistleblowers faced. According to Rarick, what was once a group of about 480 disenchanted current and former state Department of Health Services employees has grown to over 1,000 people across multiple state agencies. Those DHS employees started an account on X called "Minnesota Staff Fraud Reporting Commentary", and many have been more than willing to talk with the fraud prevention committee about what they have found and experienced.

“In our face to face meetings with a group of whistleblowers, they revealed that retaliation now includes threats of being fired with cause, which means you do not get unemployment insurance in the state of Minnesota, being blacklisted from all state agencies…and then there was a veiled threat of the use of military intelligence against them,” Rarick said.

The revelations are tied to a program which imported around 100,000 Somali refugees into Minnesota since the 1990s, though the majority (around 54,000) arrived in the US during the Obama Administration from 2009 to 2016.  Around 81% of Somali migrants are on some form of welfare and they are greatly over-represented in government subsidized business startups connect to potential fraud. 

New Soldiers

 

White House Amplifies Shocking Claims Of US Super Soldiers Deployed In Maduro Raid

White House Spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt amplified claims about American special forces super-soliders deployed advanced weaponry during the extraction phase of former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

Leavitt reposted an alleged account from a Venezuelan security guard at Maduro's compound describing what happened when Delta Force operators descended from helicopters in pitch-black conditions. This account was originally posted on X by California-based political activist Mike Netter, who is seeking to recall left-wing Governor Gavin Newsom.

"On the day of the operation, we didn't hear anything coming. We were on guard, but suddenly all our radar systems shut down without any explanation. The next thing we saw were drones, a lot of drones, flying over our positions. We didn't know how to react," the security guard on Maduro's compound said. This account was considered credible enough for Leavitt to repost.

Here's the full account from the security guard that reads Venezuelan forces were unable to comprehend the modern battlefield, where drones, sonic weapons, and we're sure insane helmet-mounted optics with AI, just made an unlevel playing field, in which the guard said, "Yes, but it was a massacre. We were hundreds, but we had no chance. They were shooting with such precision and speed... it seemed like each soldier was firing 300 rounds per minute. We couldn't do anything."

Full account:

This account from a Venezuelan security guard loyal to Nicolás Maduro is absolutely chilling—and it explains a lot about why the tone across Latin America suddenly changed.

Security Guard: On the day of the operation, we didn't hear anything coming. We were on guard, but suddenly all our radar systems shut down without any explanation. The next thing we saw were drones, a lot of drones, flying over our positions. We didn't know how to react.

Interviewer: So what happened next? How was the main attack?

Security Guard: After those drones appeared, some helicopters arrived, but there were very few. I think barely eight helicopters. From those helicopters, soldiers came down, but a very small number. Maybe twenty men. But those men were technologically very advanced. They didn't look like anything we've fought against before.

Interviewer: And then the battle began?

Security Guard: Yes, but it was a massacre. We were hundreds, but we had no chance. They were shooting with such precision and speed... it seemed like each soldier was firing 300 rounds per minute. We couldn't do anything.

Interviewer: And your own weapons? Didn't they help?

Security Guard: No help at all. Because it wasn't just the weapons. At one point, they launched something—I don't know how to describe it... it was like a very intense sound wave. Suddenly I felt like my head was exploding from the inside. We all started bleeding from the nose. Some were vomiting blood. We fell to the ground, unable to move.

Interviewer: And your comrades? Did they manage to resist?

Security Guard: No, not at all. Those twenty men, without a single casualty, killed hundreds of us. We had no way to compete with their technology, with their weapons. I swear, I've never seen anything like it. We couldn't even stand up after that sonic weapon or whatever it was.

Interviewer: So do you think the rest of the region should think twice before confronting the Americans?

Security Guard: Without a doubt. I'm sending a warning to anyone who thinks they can fight the United States. They have no idea what they're capable of. After what I saw, I never want to be on the other side of that again. They're not to be messed with.

Interviewer: And now that Trump has said Mexico is on the list, do you think the situation will change in Latin America?

Security Guard: Definitely. Everyone is already talking about this. No one wants to go through what we went through. Now everyone thinks twice. What happened here is going to change a lot of things, not just in Venezuela but throughout the region.

According to a New York Times report that offered more color on "Operation Absolute Resolve," not a single Delta Force operator was killed in action. However, the report did note that "One of the helicopters was hit. Two U.S. officials said that about half a dozen soldiers were injured in the overall operation."

One can only suspect that Delta Force operators might have used Anduril's EagleEye ...

There is no way to independently verify Netter's X post, and it reads like narrative warfare, amplified by the White House, seemingly designed to intimidate Latin American governments under socialist regimes.

The removal of Maduro fits squarely within President Trump's hemispheric defense strategy, the so-called "Donroe Doctrine," aimed at reasserting U.S. dominance across the Western Hemisphere and pushing out Chinese, Russian, and socialist influence.

At a deeper level, Donroe Doctrine appears to go beyond Venezuela, signaling an effort to bind Western Hemisphere economies into a tightly aligned bloc that begins to resemble a superstate. That may well be the long-term project for a future Vance administration.

Eastern States Breaking From National Law

 

Majority Of North Carolina Trucking Licenses Issued To Foreigners Are Illegal: Duffy

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

A review of non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) granted in North Carolina found that 54 percent were issued illegally, the Department of Transportation (DOT) said in a statement on Jan. 8.

The review was conducted by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and is part of its ongoing nationwide audit of trucking licensing systems, the department said.

DOT warned that if North Carolina does not “fix their serious failures” and revoke licenses issued illegally to foreign nationals, the department will withhold almost $50 million in federal funding.

“North Carolina’s failure to follow the rules isn’t just shameful—it’s dangerous. I’m calling on state leadership to immediately remove these dangerous drivers from our roads and clean up their system,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.

According to audit findings, North Carolina illegally issued non-domiciled CDLs to drivers whose lawful presence in the United States had expired, and some of those drivers were found to be ineligible to hold a non-domiciled commercial license.

FMCSA sent a letter to North Carolina Department of Transportation Commissioner Paul Tine and Gov. Josh Stein, outlining audit results and the corrective actions that must be taken to prevent funding from being withheld.

The agency asked North Carolina authorities to “immediately” pause the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs, identify unexpired CDLs that fail to comply with FMCSA regulations, and conduct a comprehensive internal audit to identify errors, practices, quality assurance, and other issues that led to such CDLs being granted.

“The level of noncompliance in North Carolina is egregious,” FMCSA Administrator Derek D. Barrs said. “Under Secretary Duffy, we will not hesitate to hold states accountable and protect the American people.”

The Epoch Times reached out to the North Carolina Department of Transportation and Stein’s office for comment, but did not receive a response by publication time.

North Carolina is one of the latest states the DOT has warned regarding the illegal issuance of CDLs to foreign nationals.

Illegal Drivers in California

After a federal audit found that 17,000 trucking licenses were issued illegally in California, the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles issued cancellation letters to these drivers, Duffy said in November 2025.

The move faced opposition, with the Sikh Coalition, which represents around 20,000 immigrant drivers and business owners in California, filing a lawsuit arguing the move would remove thousands of drivers from roads and disrupt supply chains and services.

“This action was taken as a result of pressure from the federal government; unfortunately, the CA-DMV has thus far failed to provide any recourse or means for drivers to correct these issues,” the Coalition said in a Dec. 23, 2025, statement, referring to the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

“By ejecting these drivers from the workforce without allowing for any sort of solution, the CA-DMV is discriminating against them on the basis of their immigration status.”

On Dec. 30, California announced it would have to delay revoking the 17,000 CDLs.

In a Jan. 7 statement, Duffy announced that FMCSA will withhold roughly $160 million from California for failing to cancel those CDLs by the Jan. 5 deadline.

“Our demands were simple: follow the rules, revoke the unlawfully-issued licenses to dangerous foreign drivers, and fix the system so this never happens again,” Duffy said.

“[Gov.] Gavin Newsom has failed to do so—putting the needs of illegal immigrants over the safety of the American people.”

Meanwhile, in December, Duffy threatened to withhold $24 million in funding from Colorado over “slow walking” the purge of illegally issued truck licenses.

Feed Lot Protesting

 

"We Won't Stop Until Heads Drop Like In 1793": Tens Of Thousands Take To Streets Of Minneapolis After ICE Shooting

Authored by Joseph Lord and Nathan Worcester via The Epoch Times,

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Minneapolis on Jan. 10 to protest the shooting of Renée Nicole Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer, according to a Minneapolis Police Department estimate provided to The Epoch Times.

A protest organizer guessed that as many as 40,000 people attended the demonstration, thronging a large park and public thoroughfares. The Epoch Times could not confirm that estimate.

Demonstrators gathered to condemn ICE operations in Minneapolis after the fatal shooting of Good in the city on Jan. 7.

Protesters began to arrive for various rallies and marches across the city around 2 p.m. ET Saturday.

The nerve center was snow-covered Powderhorn Park, not far from George Perry Floyd Square—the site of the May 2020 incident that provoked national demonstrations and riots.

Police helicopters could be seen flying overhead as protesters arrived.

On the ground, however, the police presence was sparse. Instead, participants in, or organizers of, the demonstration could be seen directing traffic through the streets. Some verbal fights with frustrated motorists ensued.

At a makeshift memorial for Good near the site of the Portland Avenue shooting, a sign was set up calling for “national strikes to boot out the admin.” Some mourners lit candles. Others, who were dressed in Aztec-like headdresses, appeared to perform a ritual involving dancing, drums, and the burning of material in a handheld vessel.

Protestors numbering in the thousands demonstrate against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Minneapolis, on Jan. 10, 2026. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

The demonstrations on Jan. 10 came after smaller, more chaotic protests on the snowy evening of Jan. 9, when demonstrators in downtown Minneapolis targeted multiple hotels they believed to be hosting immigration agents.

Law enforcement ultimately detained 30 demonstrators over the course of the night and early morning. They were cited and released.

On Jan. 10, the temperature was colder, at around 20 degrees Fahrenheit, but no additional snow fell as the afternoon wore on.

Other signs of tension between immigration law enforcement and locals were evident on the ground.

Protestors gather to demonstrate against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Minneapolis on Jan. 8, 2026. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

One gas station near the protests displayed a sign warning ICE agents not to enter without a judicial warrant.

Anti-ICE graffiti was visible in and around the demonstrations, including at Floyd Square.

Protesters marching down Chicago Avenue bumped into another group marching near 34th Street.

Along Chicago Avenue, two parents who were participating in the demonstration could be heard telling their young boy, “This is a protest.”

A chant by protesters compared the Minneapolis Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) to the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and ICE: “MPD, KKK, ICE—they’re all the same.”

Protestors against Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations walk down a street in Minneapolis, on Jan. 9, 2026. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

One protester held a sign that read, “We Won’t Stop Until Heads Drop Like in 1793,” referencing the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution.

Near the interstate, an activist who had positioned himself far from the action could be seen holding a sign reading, “Love the Alien As Yourself.”

By 10:45 p.m. ET on Jan. 10, the streets of Minneapolis were quieter.

A smaller group continued protesting at the sidewalk memorial to Good. Local police directed traffic on Portland Avenue.

People gather at a makeshift memorial for Renée Good, who was fatally shot at the location during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation, in Minneapolis, on Jan. 10, 2026. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

What Happened

Good, an American citizen, was shot and killed during an encounter with ICE agents on Jan. 7.

The incident has met with clashing interpretations, with some defending Ross’s actions as self defense and others alleging he used excessive force.

Video shows that in the moments before the shooting, four ICE agents stopped their truck in the middle of the street, exited, and approached Good’s vehicle. The footage also shows Good’s female partner, Becca Good, heckling immigration law enforcement.

As one agent attempted to reach into Good’s car and open her door from the inside, Good turned the wheel to the right, away from Ross, and accelerated her car, allegedly striking the agent, who fired his weapon, according to video and audio. The footage also records Good’s wife, who was outside the vehicle, telling her to “drive, baby, drive.”

Renée Nicole Good in a vehicle before she was fatally shot in Minneapolis on Jan. 7, 2026. Alpha News via Reuters/Screenshot via The Epoch Times

The administration has described Good as a “domestic terrorist” who was attempting to harm Ross and other ICE agents using her vehicle after earlier interfering with ICE operations in the city.

When They Eat Each Other

 

Here's Treasury's Plan To Take Down Somali Fraud Rings

While we patiently await more nothingburgers from DOJ's next overdue round of redacted Epstein files, the Treasury Department is going after Somali fraud rings...

On Friday, Secretary Scott Bessent announced a sweeping crackdown on government benefits fraud that has already cost Minnesota taxpayers billions. The initiatives aim to close the loopholes that have made the system rife with abuse and to increase oversight.

“President Trump has instructed the administration to bring accountability for the hardworking people of Minnesota,” Bessent said while visiting the gopher state. “Under Democratic Governor Tim Walz, welfare fraud has spiraled out of control. Billions of dollars intended for feeding hungry children, housing disabled seniors, and providing services for children in need were diverted to benefit Somali fraud rings.” 

While meeting with financial leaders, victims and local law enforcement, Bessent revealed how Treasury will combat the issue that nobody seemed to care about until now (despite officials knowing for years); track the money.

Using the state's Bank Secrecy Act, Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has issued a Geographic Targeting Order which will require banks and money transmitters located in Hennepin and Ramsey Counties - and include the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, to report additional information about funds transferred outside of the United States. These businesses will be required to file reports with FinCEN above certain transactions of $3,000 or more where the beneficiary is located outside of the United States. 

Currently, law enforcement has limited insight into the persons located abroad who receive the proceeds of the frauds. This Order will better equip Federal, state, and local law enforcement by providing them with additional information to assist in their investigations of government benefits fraud. It is expected to advance prosecutions and assist in the recovery of funds laundered internationally.

Additionally, the IRS is increasing audits and launching a new task force focused on pandemic-era tax scams. Agents are digging into nonprofits and charities that exploited the 501(c)(3) label to hide shady activity. 

FinCEN even issued an alert to banks, outlining “red flags” to help them spot and prevent child nutrition program fraud before it escalates. 

In a separate interview with Laura Ingraham on Fox News, Bessent also revealed that the Treasury Department plans to pay cash to anyone who comes forward with inside information about Minnesota’s massive fraud operation. 

The goal is simple: identify the fraudsters, trace how the money moved, and determine when the key decisions were made. 

Bessent made clear that the administration understands how these criminal networks actually work. “We know that these rats will turn on each other,” he said. “We heard today that one of the people who has been convicted of fraud, she was given $200,000 to bribe a juror, and she was so corrupt, she skimmed $80,000 of it and only tried to give a $120,000 bribe.”

That level of corruption, he suggested, creates opportunity for law enforcement. Treasury plans to exploit it. “So we are going to offer whistleblower payments to anyone who wants to tell us who, what, when, where, and how this fraud has been done,” Bessent said. “And I think that that will give us a great report on how to get it done.”

It was a clear signal that the Trump administration intends to break these fraud rings by following the money and turning insiders into witnesses. And it likely won’t be hard to find whistleblowers. Last year, nearly 500 Department of Human Services employees blamed Gov. Tim Walz for the surge in fraud during his administration. In a post on X last year they declared, “Tim Walz is 100% responsible for massive fraud in Minnesota,” saying they raised alarms early and repeatedly, only to be met with “the opposite response.” Instead of action, they say Walz “systematically retaliated against whistleblowers using monitoring, threats, repression,” with cover from allies in Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party and the help of the mainstream media.

Chicks For Free

 

"Yes, Yes, And Yes": Bessent Signals Crackdown On Dark-Money NGO Protests 'Just Like We Did With The Mafia'

The left's ability to rapidly stage highly organized 'pop-up' protests in response to just about any political incident is uncanny (remember Robert Creamer? "Wherever Trump and Pence are going to be, we have events, we have a whole team across the country that does that."). Often, organic protests that average Americans have every right to engage in (even if we disagree) are co-opted and amplified by 'organizers,' and blessed by the media, which runs damage control when needed ('mostly peaceful!'). Other times they orchestrate entirely scripted 'astroturf' campaigns to manufacture outrage.

The common denominator always seems to be dark-money NGOs, often funded by foreigners who would relish America's demise so they can rebuild it in their image. Chaos, collapse, control. 

We're witnessing this in real time, as the left's protest-industrial-complex predictably fired up the in multiple blue cities hours after an ICE agent shot a "ICE Watch" activist in Minneapolis. And now we're seeing mobs hunting down federal agents. 

As regular readers know, we've spent much of the past year tracking dark money NGO networks fueling the Democratic Party's pressure campaigns - what we characterize as color revolution-style operations targeting President Trump and the America First agenda. Those constant protests, and even riots, link back to left-wing billionaires and NGO networks in the US, Europe, the Americas, and even China, all seemingly working in unison and hellbent on fomenting chaos on city streets to kill Trump's agenda.

Enter Bessent

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sat down with journalist Christopher Rufo this past week. Among the topics discussed were left-wing nonprofits, with Bessent acknowledging that "we are examining" NGO activities and funding structures...

Here's the key snippet from the Rufo-Bessent conversation that is likely to keep dark-money-funded nonprofits up at night:

Christopher Rufo:

There are 501(c)(3) nonprofit groups that [are] funded by left-wing dark money, that are organizing—or at least at arm's length encouraging—criminal activities. Criminal protests. Criminal obstruction of federal officers, including ICE agents. Is the Treasury looking into this? Is it something you have authority to crack down on, and what can we expect?

Scott Bessent:

Yes, yes, and yes. So these groups that are engaging in this—we have the authority, and we are examining them. Because when you see these protesters, someone is financing them. There are safe houses. When you see the 300 people with the same laser that they're using to blind DHS agents in courthouses in Portland, someone bought those lasers.

And again, what we do is follow the money—just like we followed it with the mafia, just like we follow it. We'll find out who's done this.

I announced today that we are going to put in effect a whistleblower program. And my sense is that the rats will turn on each other.

As I believe you reported—or someone talked about in a roundtable—one of the Somali fraudsters tried to bribe a juror with $120,000. What turned out, she'd been given $200,000 to bribe the jurors, and she skimmed. It's like the scorpion—it's in their nature.

Let's revisit Seamus Bruner, Director of Research at the Government Accountability Institute, who mainstreamed the NGO debate nationwide by briefing President Trump at the Antifa Roundtable last fall.

"We have identified dozens of radical organizations, not just the decentralized Antifa organizations, but dozens of radical organizations that have received more than $100 million from the Riot Inc investors," Bruner told the president.