I live in Minnesota and I’m dreading these attacks already. It’s gonna be another two fucking years of this bullshit. Ugh… but i love living here ❤️
Tim SHOULD be VP rn but noooooooooooo, some of us HAD to stay home
Yep
I mean any Democrat incumbent or running against an R should just leverage these abysmal talking points that the orange Nero is polling at:
There have been even fewer new polls about Trump’s handling of policy issues. Here’s where he currently stands (in terms of net approval) on the four issues we track:
Immigration: -8.0
The economy: -20.5
Trade/tariffs: -20.5
Inflation: -28.8
They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
all over again
Fair, but I’m leaning more towards MAGAs just want a “win” so bad, they’re desperately trying to both-sides everything when clearly their side massively out-corrupts the left.
So negate them by not running again. Pass the baton and spend time with your kids.
Never trust the pedophiles fbi
Isn’t his competition Mike Lindel? If Minnesota falls for THAT we have serious problems
Also cause hopefully he’ll run for President in ’28. It’s the Hillary strategy: preemptively smear your next opponent.
Or maybe the reason is because PPP was a massive fraud machine, not just in Minnesota, and this isn’t about partisan politics so much as prepping the country to realize how deep the grift goes nationally.
Imo, this is about killing faith in the system more than Minnesota in particular
Sorry, im out of the loop, whats going on in minnesota?
They also know people want childcare subsidies so they are throwing shade on daycares as if fraud is rampant even though it’s not.
Stupid worldwide political bots. Why do they gotta ruin democracy for the rest of us?
looking at you Sinclair News
Here’s my take. It’s going to be a long explanation because it deserves one. Conservatives en masse have made this “story” the latest centerpiece of their culture wars.
But it’s also another distraction and acts as the perfect excuse for their growing distrust, hate, and contempt for immigrants and minority groups.
That said, the original story and footage is obviously politically charged; rife with unverified claims and misleading implications; makes accusations lacking evidence and context; is intentionally confrontational, and is framed in a deceptive way.
Conservatives who now cling to this narrative are less concerned about the actual facts, and much more interested in how this content reaffirms their anti-immigrant attitudes.
We know social services fraud exists, but this former YouTube pranker is piggybacking off of the right’s culture wars, which are centered around growing hostilities towards immigrants, so he can play the part of a faux-journalist while he misleads his target audience in order to promote a larger, political narrative and create dramatic footage.
But this isn’t journalism, it’s clout chasing.
And it’s also baffling that conservatives refer to an amateurish social media influencer who flouts basic journalistic norms and ethics as a “master journalist” while they disparage the “mainstream media” for not covering this manufactured story/footage.
And footage that’s designed in a way to allow audiences to make wild inferences because it creates the *impression* of a massive, systemic scandal.
That’s the goal here after all. To produce visual inference, not evidence.
Shirley tries to pass his efforts off as professional, but he creates an emotional narrative rather than doing formal investigative work and professional auditing, because this is more difficult to do and more difficult to sell.
He frequently stops short of providing actual proof of the crimes he’s trying to *depict.*
In his video(s), Shirley and his cohort “David?” make a lot of observations, but then try to disguise them as “proof.”
What little actual information that’s provided in these videos that’s worthy of consideration is already under active investigation.
They’re taking credit for information already provided by federal investigations and they’re using it to build their own story.
But this story tries to spin unverified accusations, insinuations and conspiracy theories into fact. Shirley and his partner in slime misrepresent their personal claims, observations and their unreliable footage as direct confirmation of widespread fraud.
Almost every single claim that they make involving large sums or broad criminal conspiracies is either unsubstantiated or unresolved in court. E.g. $9 billion in fraud, 800+ Somali owned fraudulent businesses, thousands of ongoing schemes, uncovering $110 million in fraud in one day, funds being funneled to Al-Shabaab, Governor Walz being implicated, specific daycare fraud, etc.
Shirley’s claims that these daycare centers are “empty” or aren’t operating at all are not verified either.
He visited these centers without an appointment; seeking out confrontation, then made unsubstantiated accusations against these individuals/facilities while trying to pass them off as fact.
Context is left out of these videos like whether these daycare centers were supposed to be open when Shirley showed up unannounced, if they were operating under reduced hours, whether the children were off-site, whether it was during winter break, etc…
There have been documented cases of social services and daycare fraud, but there is no independent confirmation or audit proving that these specific facilities that Shirley visited were fraudulent or that Somali run daycares are largely the culprits. There is also no confirmation of things like “fake enrollment” at these places.
In other words, Shirley relies more on observations, speculation and visual inferences than actual documented wrongdoing to create a narrative.
The other issue is that Shirley’s unprofessional style is confrontational. He confronts unwitting people on camera, he tries to enter these facilities without an appointment, he films private daycare centers without permission, and he tries to present reluctance on the part of staff as an admission of guilt.
Hell, even Kash Patel’s FBI, and an agency that is now beholden to the whims of Donald Trump, shied away from publicly validating Shirley’s observations and claims of wrongdoing.
But what’s more important here, if you ask me at least, is the performative nature of this whole charade and how its goal is to pander to those on the right who want their culture war grievances and their disgust for foreigners and immigrants vindicated, facts be damned and engagement being a top priority.
That is to say, their attention has been successfully diverted away from the larger issues that actually require our immediate attention; like how the president is monetizing the presidency to the tune of billions, or the countless resources, financial or otherwise, that this administration has been stealing from the American people to fund its kleptocratic policies and agenda.
Yes, all of these right-wing dupes are being deceived by a fraudulent administration and Republican Party, their rich donors and corporate cronies, and the MAGA talking heads and pro Trump media mouthpieces—all of whom are thriving in this divisive political climate and prospering during our very real affordability crisis.
Those in power are absolutely thrilled that their voters’ righteous anger is focused squarely on these sensationalizing stories that appeal to FEELINGS, not FACTS.
Instead of paying heed to the corruption, the greed, the profligacy, the endless scandals, the thievery and the monumental amount of fraud that’s being pursued and perpetrated by the people they elect and implicitly trust and defend; instead of focusing on the country’s growing economic inequality and divide, the exploding debt and deficit, and the wealth and resources that are being taken from the poor, only to be handed to the rich; instead of concentrating on these very real and worsening issues, conservatives are fixated on blaming this nation’s problems on immigrants and minority groups, on the disadvantaged, the sick and the needy, on those without political or social capital, without wealth, without power, without resources, and without the mind, time or energy to be orchestrating massive fraud schemes involving entire state governments and nefarious foreign benefactors.
These are people who, even if they had the means to conspire against us, wouldn’t hold a candle to the obscenely corrupt, rich and powerful elites who continue to pick our pockets clean; claiming billions, if not trillions worth of dollars, assets and political resources to sustain their corruption, their graft, their THIEFDOM, and their economic tyranny over most Americans whose wealth is spreading thinner and thinner while the richest, most influential, and politically powerful among us continue to prosper beyond measure
Two things can be true at once: there can absolutely be widespread fraud in some charitable organizations AND Walz could be doing the best he can to manage and lead in his state. These knuckle dragging bafoons are just throwing things at the wall hoping they stick
What kills me about the entire process is that the people elect a person to represent them. In a perfect world, the people vote and their representative does just that.
Instead we have political attacks, mud slinging, gerrymandering, no mail in voting and on and on and on all as ways to discredit what people want and weasel a republican into office. It makes no fucking sense.
Sounds about right up the lane of these crooked politicians
Minnesota has been blue longer than any other state in the nation. Trying to flip it is a foolish errend, and they are welcome to waste resources on it.
No fucking way Minnesota flips!
The Department Of Defense hasn’t passed an audit in 8 years. We’re talking a $trillion dollar budget. Apparently that’s not a worthy news item. Heaven forbid the media cover the Epstein files, or bribes taken by trump and people in his administration.
And racism is their only vector of attack
They did this with Newsom with the BS recall vote that lost overwhelmingly that year. But it was only there so they can claim when he runs for president, that he was hated so much the people of California wanted to recall him!
Republican strategists are all amateurs, but succeede because the people they are catering to are just, so fucking dumb that they’re guaranteed to win.
26 comments
I live in Minnesota and I’m dreading these attacks already. It’s gonna be another two fucking years of this bullshit. Ugh… but i love living here ❤️
Tim SHOULD be VP rn but noooooooooooo, some of us HAD to stay home
Yep
I mean any Democrat incumbent or running against an R should just leverage these abysmal talking points that the orange Nero is polling at:
There have been even fewer new polls about Trump’s handling of policy issues. Here’s where he currently stands (in terms of net approval) on the four issues we track:
Immigration: -8.0
The economy: -20.5
Trade/tariffs: -20.5
Inflation: -28.8
They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
all over again
Fair, but I’m leaning more towards MAGAs just want a “win” so bad, they’re desperately trying to both-sides everything when clearly their side massively out-corrupts the left.
So negate them by not running again. Pass the baton and spend time with your kids.
Never trust the pedophiles fbi
Isn’t his competition Mike Lindel? If Minnesota falls for THAT we have serious problems
Also cause hopefully he’ll run for President in ’28. It’s the Hillary strategy: preemptively smear your next opponent.
Or maybe the reason is because PPP was a massive fraud machine, not just in Minnesota, and this isn’t about partisan politics so much as prepping the country to realize how deep the grift goes nationally.
Imo, this is about killing faith in the system more than Minnesota in particular
Sorry, im out of the loop, whats going on in minnesota?
They also know people want childcare subsidies so they are throwing shade on daycares as if fraud is rampant even though it’s not.
Stupid worldwide political bots. Why do they gotta ruin democracy for the rest of us?
looking at you Sinclair News
Here’s my take. It’s going to be a long explanation because it deserves one. Conservatives en masse have made this “story” the latest centerpiece of their culture wars.
But it’s also another distraction and acts as the perfect excuse for their growing distrust, hate, and contempt for immigrants and minority groups.
That said, the original story and footage is obviously politically charged; rife with unverified claims and misleading implications; makes accusations lacking evidence and context; is intentionally confrontational, and is framed in a deceptive way.
Conservatives who now cling to this narrative are less concerned about the actual facts, and much more interested in how this content reaffirms their anti-immigrant attitudes.
We know social services fraud exists, but this former YouTube pranker is piggybacking off of the right’s culture wars, which are centered around growing hostilities towards immigrants, so he can play the part of a faux-journalist while he misleads his target audience in order to promote a larger, political narrative and create dramatic footage.
But this isn’t journalism, it’s clout chasing.
And it’s also baffling that conservatives refer to an amateurish social media influencer who flouts basic journalistic norms and ethics as a “master journalist” while they disparage the “mainstream media” for not covering this manufactured story/footage.
And footage that’s designed in a way to allow audiences to make wild inferences because it creates the *impression* of a massive, systemic scandal.
That’s the goal here after all. To produce visual inference, not evidence.
Shirley tries to pass his efforts off as professional, but he creates an emotional narrative rather than doing formal investigative work and professional auditing, because this is more difficult to do and more difficult to sell.
He frequently stops short of providing actual proof of the crimes he’s trying to *depict.*
In his video(s), Shirley and his cohort “David?” make a lot of observations, but then try to disguise them as “proof.”
What little actual information that’s provided in these videos that’s worthy of consideration is already under active investigation.
They’re taking credit for information already provided by federal investigations and they’re using it to build their own story.
But this story tries to spin unverified accusations, insinuations and conspiracy theories into fact. Shirley and his partner in slime misrepresent their personal claims, observations and their unreliable footage as direct confirmation of widespread fraud.
Almost every single claim that they make involving large sums or broad criminal conspiracies is either unsubstantiated or unresolved in court. E.g. $9 billion in fraud, 800+ Somali owned fraudulent businesses, thousands of ongoing schemes, uncovering $110 million in fraud in one day, funds being funneled to Al-Shabaab, Governor Walz being implicated, specific daycare fraud, etc.
Shirley’s claims that these daycare centers are “empty” or aren’t operating at all are not verified either.
He visited these centers without an appointment; seeking out confrontation, then made unsubstantiated accusations against these individuals/facilities while trying to pass them off as fact.
Context is left out of these videos like whether these daycare centers were supposed to be open when Shirley showed up unannounced, if they were operating under reduced hours, whether the children were off-site, whether it was during winter break, etc…
There have been documented cases of social services and daycare fraud, but there is no independent confirmation or audit proving that these specific facilities that Shirley visited were fraudulent or that Somali run daycares are largely the culprits. There is also no confirmation of things like “fake enrollment” at these places.
In other words, Shirley relies more on observations, speculation and visual inferences than actual documented wrongdoing to create a narrative.
The other issue is that Shirley’s unprofessional style is confrontational. He confronts unwitting people on camera, he tries to enter these facilities without an appointment, he films private daycare centers without permission, and he tries to present reluctance on the part of staff as an admission of guilt.
Hell, even Kash Patel’s FBI, and an agency that is now beholden to the whims of Donald Trump, shied away from publicly validating Shirley’s observations and claims of wrongdoing.
But what’s more important here, if you ask me at least, is the performative nature of this whole charade and how its goal is to pander to those on the right who want their culture war grievances and their disgust for foreigners and immigrants vindicated, facts be damned and engagement being a top priority.
That is to say, their attention has been successfully diverted away from the larger issues that actually require our immediate attention; like how the president is monetizing the presidency to the tune of billions, or the countless resources, financial or otherwise, that this administration has been stealing from the American people to fund its kleptocratic policies and agenda.
Yes, all of these right-wing dupes are being deceived by a fraudulent administration and Republican Party, their rich donors and corporate cronies, and the MAGA talking heads and pro Trump media mouthpieces—all of whom are thriving in this divisive political climate and prospering during our very real affordability crisis.
Those in power are absolutely thrilled that their voters’ righteous anger is focused squarely on these sensationalizing stories that appeal to FEELINGS, not FACTS.
Instead of paying heed to the corruption, the greed, the profligacy, the endless scandals, the thievery and the monumental amount of fraud that’s being pursued and perpetrated by the people they elect and implicitly trust and defend; instead of focusing on the country’s growing economic inequality and divide, the exploding debt and deficit, and the wealth and resources that are being taken from the poor, only to be handed to the rich; instead of concentrating on these very real and worsening issues, conservatives are fixated on blaming this nation’s problems on immigrants and minority groups, on the disadvantaged, the sick and the needy, on those without political or social capital, without wealth, without power, without resources, and without the mind, time or energy to be orchestrating massive fraud schemes involving entire state governments and nefarious foreign benefactors.
These are people who, even if they had the means to conspire against us, wouldn’t hold a candle to the obscenely corrupt, rich and powerful elites who continue to pick our pockets clean; claiming billions, if not trillions worth of dollars, assets and political resources to sustain their corruption, their graft, their THIEFDOM, and their economic tyranny over most Americans whose wealth is spreading thinner and thinner while the richest, most influential, and politically powerful among us continue to prosper beyond measure
Two things can be true at once: there can absolutely be widespread fraud in some charitable organizations AND Walz could be doing the best he can to manage and lead in his state. These knuckle dragging bafoons are just throwing things at the wall hoping they stick
What kills me about the entire process is that the people elect a person to represent them. In a perfect world, the people vote and their representative does just that.
Instead we have political attacks, mud slinging, gerrymandering, no mail in voting and on and on and on all as ways to discredit what people want and weasel a republican into office. It makes no fucking sense.
Sounds about right up the lane of these crooked politicians
Minnesota has been blue longer than any other state in the nation. Trying to flip it is a foolish errend, and they are welcome to waste resources on it.
No fucking way Minnesota flips!
The Department Of Defense hasn’t passed an audit in 8 years. We’re talking a $trillion dollar budget. Apparently that’s not a worthy news item. Heaven forbid the media cover the Epstein files, or bribes taken by trump and people in his administration.
And racism is their only vector of attack
They did this with Newsom with the BS recall vote that lost overwhelmingly that year. But it was only there so they can claim when he runs for president, that he was hated so much the people of California wanted to recall him!
Republican strategists are all amateurs, but succeede because the people they are catering to are just, so fucking dumb that they’re guaranteed to win.
A Republican only needs to win once.
Like [Wisconsin](https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/2dce82ac8570405e86c4c3c498fd0d99) and [Florida](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/florida-supreme-court-upholds-congressional-map-that-eliminates-a-majority-black-district), they don’t hesitate to drop all their promises and immediately focus on gerrymandering to make sure it will become a one-party state from then on.
Florida, of course, is less clear than Wisconsin. But I don’t trust them to to be in charge of anything and having another clean election after that.
No they’re not.
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