Overview
- Independent journalist Nick Shirley’s 42‑minute video, viewed over 100 million times since Dec. 26, shows apparently inactive child care and learning centers that reportedly received substantial public funding.
- FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau had already surged personnel and investigative resources to Minnesota and called current cases “the tip of a very large iceberg.”
- Federal prosecutors have suggested that fraud across high‑risk programs since 2018 could total up to about $9 billion, with at least 78 people charged and roughly 60 convictions secured in related cases.
- Governor Tim Walz’s office said the state launched investigations into facilities highlighted in the video, hired an outside auditor for high‑risk programs, shut down the Housing Stabilization Services program, created a program‑integrity post, and backed prosecutions.
- House Speaker Mike Johnson said House Oversight expanded its inquiry and requested data and interviews, while a social‑media claim that the SBA cut off Minnesota grants lacks independent confirmation in mainstream reporting.