By Sarah Ferris, Kate Bolduan, Alejandra Jaramillo, CNN

(CNN) — Doug LaMalfa, a longtime Republican congressman from Northern California, has died, House GOP leadership announced Tuesday. He was 65.

As a fourth-generation rice farmer and business owner, LaMalfa was a respected voice in Washington on agriculture and rural communities, including as chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus. He was influential in Congress’ response to the deadly wildfires that struck his home state — including his sprawling district, which includes Chico, California — in recent years.

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, a close friend of the congressman, confirmed LaMalfa’s death in a statement Tuesday.

“Jacquie and I are devastated about the sudden loss of our friend, Congressman Doug LaMalfa. Doug was a loving father and husband, and staunch advocate for his constituents and rural America,” Emmer wrote in a post on X. “Our prayers are with Doug’s wife, Jill, and their children.”

Rep. Richard Hudson, the House GOP campaign chief and another close friend of LaMalfa, remembered the congressman Tuesday as “a tireless advocate for the people of Northern California.”

“Doug was a principled conservative and a tireless advocate for the people of Northern California. He was never afraid to fight for rural communities, farmers, and working families. Doug brought grit, authenticity, and conviction to everything he did in public service,” Hudson wrote in a statement, noting that the two served on the Agriculture Committee together and enjoyed discussing all things cars, including their shared love of NASCAR. “I will deeply miss my ‘amigo.’”

LaMalfa’s absence will reverberate immediately in the narrowly divided House. Speaker Mike Johnson is overseeing one of the thinnest House majorities in history and can now only afford to lose two Republicans in any party-line vote on the floor. The current House makeup stands at 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats.

California will need to hold a special election to replace LaMalfa in the coming weeks. The seat is likely to remain in GOP hands: LaMalfa represented a district that President Donald Trump won by roughly 25 points in the last election. While California Democrats have redrawn the district for the 2026 midterms, the special election is expected to be held under the current lines — which means a safe Republican seat.

President Donald Trump opened his remarks at a House GOP member retreat Tuesday by paying tribute to the late congressman.

“I want to express our tremendous sorrow at the loss of a great member, great, great, great member, Congressman Doug LaMalfa, who passed away yesterday, as you probably have heard,” the president said, speaking from the stage of the Kennedy Center, which the board recently renamed to include Trump.

The president praised LaMalfa’s leadership and policy focus, highlighting his role in Western issues.

“He was the leader of the Western caucus, a fierce champion on California water issues. He was great on water,” Trump said. “A true defender of American children. He was a defender of everybody.”

Trump also offered condolences to LaMalfa’s family and reflected on their political alignment, saying the congressman “voted with me 100% of the time.”

While the president said he considered postponing his Tuesday morning remarks to the full conference,

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By Alex Stambaugh, Tami Luhby, Kaanita Iyer, CNN

(CNN) — The Trump administration is slashing $10 billion in funds for social services and child care in five Democratic-led states, a Health and Human Services official confirmed to CNN, with the agency suggesting without evidence that the funding has been used fraudulently.

The freeze, first reported by the New York Post, will impact California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, according to news reports confirmed by HHS.

HHS will cut more than $7 billion in funding for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which provides cash assistance to households, along with more than $2 billion for the Child Care and Development Fund. The department will also hold around $870 million from the Social Services Block Grant.

“For too long, Democrat-led states and Governors have been complicit in allowing massive amounts of fraud to occur under their watch,” HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon told CNN. “Under the Trump Administration, we are ensuring that federal taxpayer dollars are being used for legitimate purposes. We will ensure these states are following the law and protecting hard-earned taxpayer money.”

CNN has reached out to the Office of Management and Budget and all five states’ departments of health and gubernatorial offices for more information about the cuts.

The news comes just days after the Trump administration paused federal funding of child care programs in Minnesota amid a deepening federal probe into allegations of fraud involving social services. The allegations were made in a YouTube video by 23-year-old content creator Nick Shirley, who claimed, with little evidence, that Somali-run child care centers in Minnesota were fraudulently taking funding meant to provide child care for low-income families.

In the wake of the viral video, the Department of Homeland Security and FBI ramped up their presence in the state, federal funding for child care there was frozen and the Trump administration said it is deploying 2,000 federal agents as part of an immigration crackdown. Federal and state investigations into alleged wrongdoing are ongoing.

There has been no evidence to suggest the other four Democratic states have suffered widespread fraud.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York, condemned the funding freeze and accused the administration of “political retribution.”

“To use the power of the government to harm the neediest Americans is immoral and indefensible” the senator said in statement posted on X. “This has nothing to do with fraud and everything to do with political retribution that punishes poor children in need of assistance.”

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™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Hanna Park contributed to this report.

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By Alex Stambaugh, Tami Luhby, Kaanita Iyer, CNN

(CNN) — The Trump administration is freezing $10 billion in funds for social services and child care in five Democratic-led states, according to a Health and Human Services official, with the agency suggesting without evidence that the funding has been used fraudulently.

The freeze, first reported by the New York Post, will impact California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, according to news reports confirmed by HHS.

HHS will cut more than $7 billion in funding for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which provides cash assistance to households, along with more than $2 billion for the Child Care and Development Fund. The department will also hold around $870 million from the Social Services Block Grant.

“For too long, Democrat-led states and Governors have been complicit in allowing massive amounts of fraud to occur under their watch,” HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon told CNN. “Under the Trump Administration, we are ensuring that federal taxpayer dollars are being used for legitimate purposes. We will ensure these states are following the law and protecting hard-earned taxpayer money.”

CNN has reached out to the Office of Management and Budget and all five states’ departments of health and gubernatorial offices for more information about the cuts.

The Colorado Department of Human Services told CNN that the agency has not received a notification from the administration about the freeze.

“Should these funding sources change, we remain committed to supporting our families in Colorado and will continue to advocate for the programs and services that help them thrive,” the department said.

The news comes just days after the Trump administration paused federal funding of child care programs in Minnesota amid a deepening federal probe into allegations of fraud involving social services. The allegations were made in a YouTube video by 23-year-old content creator Nick Shirley, who claimed, with little evidence, that Somali-run child care centers in Minnesota were fraudulently taking funding meant to provide child care for low-income families.

In the wake of the viral video, the Department of Homeland Security and FBI ramped up their presence in the state, federal funding for child care there was frozen and the Trump administration said it is deploying 2,000 federal agents as part of an immigration crackdown. Federal and state investigations into alleged wrongdoing are ongoing.

There has been no evidence to suggest the other four Democratic states have suffered widespread fraud.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York, condemned the funding freeze and accused the administration of “political retribution.”

“To use the power of the government to harm the neediest Americans is immoral and indefensible” the senator said in statement posted on X. “This has nothing to do with fraud and everything to do with political retribution that punishes poor children in need of assistance.”

This story has been updated with additional information.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Hanna Park contributed to this report.

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CNN

By Jeff Zeleny, CNN

(CNN) — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz dropped his reelection bid for a third term Monday as a welfare-fraud scandal in his state has intensified and become a political flashpoint seized upon by President Donald Trump.

“I can’t give a political campaign my all,” Walz told reporters at the state capitol in St. Paul. “Every minute that I spend defending my own political interests would be a minute I can’t spend defending the people of Minnesota against the criminals who prey on our generosity and the cynics who want to prey on our differences.”

Walz read from a prepared statement and walked away without taking questions.

Walz, the Democratic nominee for vice president in 2024, reached his decision after spending the weekend discussing his plans with friends and advisers. He met with Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar on Sunday, two people familiar with the matter told CNN, as the Democratic senator decides whether to jump into the governor’s race.

Klobuchar, who was reelected to a fourth term in 2024, has been “getting a lot of outreach, encouraging her to run,” a person close to her told CNN, and is “seriously considering it.” Klobuchar did not respond to a request for comment about her meeting with Walz.

She is a former prosecutor in Minneapolis and serves in Senate leadership, but over the years has privately expressed interest in being governor and serving as a chief executive. The senator sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020.

For Walz, 61, the announcement capped a rapid rise – and fall – on the national scene after former Vice President Kamala Harris selected him to be her running mate during their abbreviated presidential race. Walz relished in the role of attack dog, with his blistering critiques of Trump becoming a soundtrack for Democrats during the campaign.

A deepening federal probe into a fraud scandal in Minnesota complicated Walz’s bid for an unprecedented third term. He has not been accused of any wrongdoing, but Republicans have sought to blame Walz and Democrats for the massive abuse of taxpayer dollars.

It was the recent criticism from the Trump administration and right-wing allies that Walz said contributed to his decision not to seek reelection.

“For the last several years, an organized group of criminals have sought to take advantage of this state’s generosity,” Walz said. “And even as we make progress in the fight against the fraudsters, we now see an organized group of political actors seeking to take advantage of a crisis.”

Walz had been criticized for his administration’s oversight of the welfare programs. Several Democrats in the state privately cautioned Walz against seeking reelection as outrage intensified in Minnesota and beyond over the misuse of funds.

Minnesota officials have until January 9 to prov