The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the National Women's Law Center, and the National Center for Law and Economic Justice have filed a lawsuit against the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The lawsuit seeks the disclosure of correspondence between department officials and pro-Trump right-wing internet personality Nick Shirley.
Shirley's video, published in late 2025 and alleging irregularities at some childcare centers in Minnesota, was cited by senior HHS officials as justification for funding restrictions. However, subsequent media reports revealed that the claims in the video were misleading and exaggerated.
Earlier this month, HHS was forced to withdraw its decision to freeze $10 billion in childcare subsidies and social service funds for five Democratic-led states (California, Illinois, Colorado, New York, and Minnesota) due to legal obstacles. A federal judge had previously blocked the freeze while the states' lawsuit proceeds.
Earlier this year, Trump launched an aggressive immigration crackdown in Minnesota and claimed that Somali communities in the state were committing fraud. Rights groups say the crackdown has created a climate of fear and that Trump is using isolated fraud cases as a pretext to target immigrants. They also point out that Trump has pardoned individuals convicted of fraud in the past, questioning his ability to combat fraud.