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Defiant Trump to hold rally at same place he was shot at in Butler, Pennsylvania

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From LifeSiteNews

By Stephen Kokx

The former president and GOP candidate said he wants to have a ‘big and beautiful rally, honoring the soul of our beloved firefighting hero, Corey (Comperatore) and those brave patriots injured two weeks ago.’

Less than a week after the Secret Service urged Donald Trump to not hold events outside, the former president announced on TRUTH Social that he will be returning to the same location he was shot at in Pennsylvania.

“I will be going back to Butler, Pennsylvania for a big and beautiful rally, honoring the soul of our beloved firefighting hero, Corey (Comperatore) and those brave patriots injured two weeks ago. What a day it will be — fight, fight, fight!”

According to The Washington Post, the Secret Service suggested that Trump should not hold rallies at outdoor venues and to instead campaign indoors. Some pundits have argued that the agency’s request is a form of election interference intended to suppress enthusiasm for Trump, who, according to the New York Post, drew an estimated crowd of 80,000 at a rally in Wildwood, New Jersey this summer.

Trump’s first campaign stop after accepting the Republican Party’s presidential nomination this month was at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the second largest city in the state. The location has a maximum capacity of around 12,000. Thousands of supporters who waited in line to get in but were turned away mulled about outside while Trump and running mate J.D. Vance gave their speeches to a raucous crowd.

The Secret Service has been roundly criticized for its failure to protect Trump on July 13, the day he was shot at by would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks. Crooks was brought to the attention of law enforcement at the rally by several attendees long before he fired multiple rounds at Trump’s head around 6:11p.m. EST. The agency has blamed everything from miscommunication with local police to claiming the building Crooks shot from was not only outside the perimeter but was too dangerous for agents to be stationed on because it had a “sloped” roof.

Former Secret Service Director Kim Cheatle resigned her post after Congressional lawmakers grilled her days after the shooting. Republicans have blamed the attack on Homeland Security Secretary Alexander Mayorkas for having turned down repeated requests from the Trump team to beef up his security over the past two years.

On July 27, a defiant Trump took to TRUTH Social to declare that he will not be scaling back his campaign events.


The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Washington D.C., has found that mobile devices that “regularly visited” Crooks’ home and place of work also visited a location near Secret Service and FBI headquarters in Washington, raising the specter that there was possible Deep State involvement in coaxing Crooks to take action against Trump.

Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin has already told Fox News that “we cannot trust the FBI to do an open and honest investigation” about the assassination attempt.

Aside from the death of Comperatore, two other men were critically injured at the rally, 74-year-old James “Jim” Copenhaver and 57-year-old David “Jake” Dutch. Both men’s families have released statements expressing thanks for the support they have receive as they recover from “life-altering injuries.”

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DOOR TO DOOR: Feds descend on Minneapolis day cares tied to massive fraud

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Federal agents are now going “DOOR TO DOOR” in Minneapolis, launching what the Department of Homeland Security itself describes as an on-the-ground sweep of businesses and day-care centers tied to Minnesota’s exploding fraud scandal — a case that has already burned through at least $1 billion in taxpayer money and is rapidly closing in on Democrat Gov. Tim Walz and his administration.

ICE agents, working under the umbrella of the Department of Homeland Security, fanned out across the city this week, showing up unannounced at locations suspected of billing state and federal programs for services that never existed. One day-care worker told reporters Monday that masked agents arrived at her facility, demanded paperwork, and questioned staff about operations and enrollment.

“DHS is on the ground in Minneapolis, going DOOR TO DOOR at suspected fraud sites,” the agency posted on X. “The American people deserve answers on how their taxpayer money is being used and ARRESTS when abuse is found.”

Authorities say the confirmed fraud already totals roughly $300 million tied to fake food programs, $220 million linked to bogus autism services, and more than $300 million charged for housing assistance that never reached the people it was meant to help. Investigators from the FBI, Justice Department, and Department of Labor have now expanded their probes after a viral investigation exposed taxpayer-funded day cares that received more than $1 million each while allegedly serving few — or zero — children.

One of the most glaring examples, the Minneapolis-based Quality “Learing” Center — infamous for its misspelled sign — suddenly appeared busy Monday as national media arrived. Locals told reporters the center is typically empty and often looks permanently closed, despite receiving about $1.9 million in public funds. State inspection records show the facility has racked up 95 violations since 2019. Employees allegedly cursed at reporters while children were bused in during posted afternoon hours.

DHS officials say the “DOOR TO DOOR” operation is deliberate. In videos released online, agents are seen questioning nearby business owners about whether adjacent buildings ever had foot traffic, whether they appeared open, and whether operators used subcontractors or outside partners to pad billing. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem posted footage of agents pressing workers about business relationships and transportation services used by suspected fraud sites.

“This is a large-scale investigation,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told the New York Post, confirming that Homeland Security Investigations and ICE are targeting fraudulent day-care and health-care centers as well as related financial schemes.

FBI Director Kash Patel warned that what investigators have uncovered so far is “just the tip of a very large iceberg.” He pointed to the bureau’s dismantling of a $250 million COVID-era food-aid scam tied to the Feeding Our Future network, a case that resulted in 78 indictments and 57 convictions. Patel has also made clear that denaturalization and deportation remain on the table for convicted fraudsters where the law allows.

Dozens of arrests have already been made across the broader scheme, many involving Somali immigrants, though federal officials stress the investigation targets criminal behavior — not communities. Some local residents say the scandal is hurting law-abiding families. One Somali Uber driver told reporters he works 16-hour days and is furious that “some people are taking advantage of the system,” making the entire community look bad.

Now, with federal agents going “DOOR TO DOOR” across Minneapolis, the era of polite indifference appears to be over. The message from Washington is blunt: the money trail is being followed, the paperwork is being checked, and the days of treating taxpayer-funded programs like an open vault are coming to an end.

 

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Feds pull the plug on small business grants to Minnesota after massive fraud reports

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The Small Business Administration is moving to freeze grant money flowing into Minnesota after explosive allegations of large-scale fraud tied to state oversight failures, with SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler signaling an immediate crackdown following recent independent reporting.

In a series of comments shared publicly by conservative commentator Benny Johnson, Loeffler said the agency is “cutting off and clawing back” SBA grants to the state while investigators dig deeper into what she described as a rapidly expanding fraud network.

Johnson wrote that Loeffler told him she was “disgusted and sickened” after reviewing footage from YouTuber Nick Shirley, whose on-the-ground reporting in Minnesota highlighted what he said were sham daycare and learning centers collecting millions in public funds despite showing little or no sign of legitimate operations.

According to Johnson, Loeffler blamed the situation on Democrat Gov. Tim Walz, accusing his administration of refusing to enforce basic rules governing small businesses and allowing fraud to flourish unchecked.

Johnson said Loeffler told him SBA investigators were able to identify roughly half a billion dollars in suspected fraud within days of focusing on Minnesota, calling the operation an “industrial-scale crime ring” that ripped off American taxpayers.

“Pending further review, SBA is freezing all grant funding to the state in order to stop the rampant waste of taxpayer dollars and uncover the full depth of fraud,” Loeffler said, according to Johnson’s account, adding that the total scope of the scheme remains unknown and could reach into the billions.

The controversy gained national traction after Shirley posted video of himself visiting multiple facilities, including a South Minneapolis site known as the Quality Learning Center, which he reported was approved for federal aid for up to 99 children but appeared inactive during normal business hours.

The center’s sign, Shirley noted, even misspelled the word “learning” as “learing.”

In the footage, a woman inside the building is heard shouting “Don’t open up,” falsely claiming Shirley and his colleague were Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

After the video circulated, Rep. Tom Emmer, a Republican, publicly demanded answers from Walz, questioning how such facilities were approved for millions in taxpayer funding.

Shirley’s reporting followed earlier investigations, including a November report by City Journal alleging that members of Minnesota’s Somali community had sent millions of dollars in stolen taxpayer funds overseas, with some of that money reportedly ending up in the hands of Al-Shabaab, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization.

While Walz’s administration has insisted it takes fraud seriously, the SBA’s decision to halt grant funding marks one of the most aggressive federal responses yet, underscoring how rapidly a local scandal has escalated into a national reckoning over oversight, enforcement, and accountability in Minnesota.

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