U.S., October 28, 2025. REUTERS/Fred Greaves
(New York, New York) – One day after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced he is stepping down. President Trump made an announcement on Truth Social Tuesday morning saying his administration will be investigating the state of California.
“California, under Governor Gavin Newscum, is more corrupt than Minnesota, if that’s possible??? The Fraud Investigation of California has begun.”
The remarks followed days of intensifying scrutiny over alleged abuse of public programs in Minnesota – a controversy that culminated in Walz abruptly ending his reelection bid. Walz, the Democratic Party’s 2024 vice-presidential nominee, said he could not campaign and govern simultaneously amid the political fallout surrounding investigations into child-care and social-services fraud.
Walz framed the controversy as partisan attacks, accusing Trump and Republicans of trying to make Minnesota “a colder, meaner place.” Trump and congressional Republicans have countered that the allegations point to deeper failures of oversight and accountability in Democrat-run governments.
In a separate Truth Social post reacting to Walz’s exit, Trump accused the governor of being “caught, redhanded” in a massive scheme involving “tens of billions of taxpayer dollars,” claiming Walz was not alone. Trump extended that criticism to other Democratic governors, arguing that Newsom and fellow blue-state leaders have performed “an even more dishonest and incompetent job,” insisting, “No one is above the law!”
Trump’s renewed focus on California taps into long-standing conservative criticism that Newsom presides over a system plagued by weak oversight, ballooning costs, and entrenched bureaucracy – even as Sacramento continues to demand more funding from taxpayers.
Those arguments received fresh backing in a recent assessment from California’s nonpartisan state auditor, which placed Newsom’s administration and several major state agencies under heightened “high-risk” scrutiny. The report warned of persistent failures across benefit programs, unemployment systems, financial reporting, cybersecurity, and water infrastructure – exposing the state to billions of dollars in additional costs and potential public safety risks.
As investigations in Minnesota continue and scrutiny intensifies in California, Trump’s latest comments signal that alleged fraud and oversight failures in Democratic-led states are likely to remain a central theme of his political messaging.
