NATIONAL NEWS

Trump administration says it’s freezing child care funds to Minnesota after series of fraud schemes

Dec 30, 2025, 3:18 PM | Updated: 3:54 pm

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration announced on Tuesday that it’s freezing child care funds to Minnesota after a series of fraud schemes in recent years.

Acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Jim O’Neill announced on the social platform X that the step is in response to “blatant fraud that appears to be rampant in Minnesota and across the country.”

“We have turned off the money spigot and we are finding the fraud,” he said.

The announcement comes after years of investigation that began with the $300 million scheme at the nonprofit Feeding Our Future, for which 57 defendants in Minnesota have been convicted. Prosecutors said the organization was at the center of the country’s largest COVID-19-related fraud scam, when defendants exploited a state-run, federally funded program intended to provide food for children.

National News

Associated Press

Pennsylvania cocaine trafficking case has ties to 2 fraternities

More than a dozen people were criminally charged Monday over their alleged ties to a cocaine-trafficking ring in Pennsylvania that involved two fraternities and students. A total of 14 defendants — 13 of which were Penn State University students at or around the time of the alleged crimes in 2023 and 2024 — were charged […]

23 minutes ago

President Donald Trump returns a salute as he walks from Marine One to his limousine upon his arriv...

Associated Press

Trump’s slight of South Korea in favor of the North raises broader US security concerns

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s decision to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea does not just slight a longtime ally but raises broader concerns about the security interests of the United States in Asia and elsewhere. Trump explained his decision by citing South Korea’s refusal to join his war against Iran and […]

56 minutes ago

FBI Director Kash Patel attends a news conference at the Department of Justice, Wednesday, August 5...

Associated Press

Judge blocks the Trump administration from moving FBI headquarters to DC office building

A U.S. judge on Monday blocked plans to move the FBI’s headquarters to a federal office building in Washington, finding that President Donald Trump’s administration illegally tossed out a previously approved plan to build a new facility nearby in Maryland. The ruling is the latest development in a yearslong battle over where to house the […]

2 hours ago

From left, Coalition for Open Democracy's Voter Education Coordinator Sarah Ortiz, summer student I...

Associated Press

Lawsuit Challenges NH Student ID Voter Restriction

From court challenges on student IDs to new requirements for absentee ballots, voting in 2026 will bring a number of changes for Granite-staters for students and residents who have moved in-state or between states. “The laws have changed a lot, so if you voted in 2025 or 2024, this year will be different,” said Olivia […]

4 hours ago

FILE - A federal agent wears an Immigration and Customs Enforcement badge in New York, June 10, 202...

Associated Press

ICE pitches legal insurance to help shield local officers who make immigration arrests

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is pitching a plan to help shield local police officers who make immigration arrests from possible financial consequences if they are accused of on-duty misconduct. The agency is proposing to subsidize liability insurance for state and local officers who are trained and deputized to enforce federal immigration laws, according to […]

4 hours ago

President Donald Trump gestures to Nathaniel Rai, the boy lifeguard Ryder Williams, left, saved as ...

Associated Press

Teen lifeguard and boy he rescued are honored at White House after Trump saw dramatic viral video

WASHINGTON (AP) — A teenage lifeguard and the boy he rescued off the coast of California were reunited Monday at the White House as President Donald Trump honored both as heroes. “What you did was incredible, and everybody saw it,” Trump told the boys, referring to a viral video of the July rescue in Santa […]

4 hours ago

Trump administration says it’s freezing child care funds to Minnesota after series of fraud schemes