Boy, do we hate being right all the time. In December, this writer said Minnesota's newest welfare scheme — its Paid Family and Medical Leave Law — was going to be ripe, fertile ground for fraud when it went into effect in January of this year. A few weeks later, we learned the program would let people collect 12 weeks of payments even if they weren't working, which all but confirmed our suspicions. Less than a week after the January rollout, almost 18,000 people had applied for the program.
Now it's been confirmed that these dollars, which were meant to protect people's income if they or a loved one were seriously ill, are being used to pay rioters who tried to interfere with ICE operations in the state.
🚨 HOLY SMOKES. It was just confirmed that Tim Walz's administration is PAYING leftist rioters to take up to 12 WEEKS off of work using tax dollars
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) February 25, 2026
They get the funds under "Paid Family Medical Leave" because they got tear-gassed for targeting agents
"Yes, we have seen… pic.twitter.com/FhGW5iQj0b
Simply incredible.
Rep. Cedrick Frazier of the DFL Party, asked about this.
"We've seen how there's been chemical munitions used on some folks that were out exercising their First Amendment rights and we know that those cause harm and damage," Frazier said. "Have you seen any of that in terms of applications that are coming out? Those types of actions being reasons for folks needing to access this program?"
"The short answer to your question is yes," replied Evan Rowe of the Department of Employment and Economic Development. "As would any circumstance that causes injury or harm to the public, I think we have seen applications have been tied to some of the violence that we saw...as a result of Operation Metro Surge."
"I guess that is not unexpected...that is, I think, one benefit of having this program," Rowe said. "That peole who have been seriously injured now have the ability take time to care."
You do not have a First Amendment right to impede, obstruct, or harass federal agents, which is what they were doing.
If this is true, it’s insane. Paid leave is for babies, chemo, and busted backs, not political street theater.
— rowdyamerican (@rowdyamerican69) February 25, 2026
But show the receipts: who’s approved, under what diagnosis/code, and what the policy says about protest injuries. Otherwise it’s just rage bait with a committee clip.
We all knew this program, just like housing, childcare, and Feeding Our Future, was going to be used to funnel taxpayer dollars to fraudulent recipients.
Then, when someone really needs paid leave, there won't be money for them, and Democrats won't shoulder the blame for abusing taxpayers once again.