Liz Collin Reports

Send us Fan MailAshley Thoma — a Minnesota mom who made the incredibly difficult decision to move her family out of the state — spoke with Liz Collin on her podcast.Thoma explained there wasn't a "final straw.” However, more and more concerns about taxes, fraud, education, and public safety had been building up over the years.In looking back at the past several years in Minnesota, Thoma explained that, "It was just looking at the fact that we were just repeating mistakes ... and our leaders don't seem to acknowledge them."In looking ahead to raising her family outside the state she grew up in, Thoma said, “I think because I'm in the middle of raising kids ... I'm watching the state through my children's eyes and it changes perspective completely.”Support the show

Send us Fan MailRepublican state Sen. Michael Holmstrom joined Liz Collin on her podcast.Sen. Holmstrom discussed several concerns now that Democrats have gained even more control in Minnesota — and what it could mean for the future of Minnesota.He also spoke about how DFL legislators are likely to raise taxes, pass new gun control bills, and more. “I think that all you have to do is look to the last session ... they're going to do whatever they think can hurt the Republicans and help with their radical ideology. Socialism's on the ticket, everything. Raising taxes, raising unfunded mandates, raising the fees, whether it be tab fees or just any of your government fees, there are thousands of them. We're going to see it all,” Holmstrom said.Support the show

Send us Fan MailColin McDonald, the assistant attorney general for the National Fraud Enforcement Division, spoke with Liz Collin about the ongoing efforts for accountability and the fight against fraud in Minnesota and beyond.The National Fraud Enforcement Division has only been up and running for a little more than 200 days. However, McDonald explained that, “in the last about 115 days, there's been around 990 months of cumulative sentences handed out to 13 fraudsters in Minnesota from cases that the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Fraud Division have been working on for some time."Collin asked the question that so many people in the Alpha News audience have been asking: will elected officials ever be held accountable?McDonald explained that the Fraud Enforcement Division has been "building our apparatus of fraud prosecutors and agents to ensure that we are bringing accountability to the full field of culpable criminal actors there in Minnesota."Support the show

Send us Fan MailAuthor Paul Wessel spoke with Liz Collin about "The Nolte 36" — the almost unbelievable story of the 36 cousins in his family who served in World War II and survived.His book, "They All Came Home," explains how they served with humility, honor, and a sense of honest values during one of the most challenging times in our nation's history.Wessel spoke about how his relatives immigrated from Germany and settled in Fairmont, Minn., in the late 1800s. Their descendants would later serve in WWII and survived more than a few harrowing moments during the war. One of his relatives flew more than 30 missions over France and Germany as a B-24 bomber pilot — and was hit with flack during his last one.“I think at this point in our country we're looking for hope. We're looking for models that we can reflect on and say, what does integrity look like? What does humility look like?" Wessel said. Support the show

Send us Fan MailTwo longtime Minnesota Democrats are voting for Republicans for the very first time this election. The newfound Republican voters, Margie Simon and Anthony Walsh, joined Liz Collin on her podcast.Simon and Walsh explained their reasons for making the switch this election — and their concerns for the future of Minnesota.Simon explained that, "What we're seeing the DFL-DSA party evolve into is one that focuses on ideology rather than expertise. So we're getting a lot of people in offices who really aren't experienced and lack the expertise to do what they're doing."Meanwhile, Walsh said, "I think that we have the opportunity to really send a message to the rest of the country that fraud is unacceptable and that the buck does stop with our elected officials.”Support the show

Send us Fan MailTen years ago, Praya Samsundar was working at Alpha News when she began investigating allegations that U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar married her brother. Ten years have passed and an official investigation is now finally underway. However, Samsundar — who was one of the first to break the scandal — remains the only reporter to ever receive a response from Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, the man at the center of the story. Samsundar joined Liz Collin on her podcast to talk about the striking differences — and strange similarities — between then and now along with some of the other controversies surrounding Omar."I believe that the reporting that we did 10 years ago was really the loose thread that once authorities started pulling on it, things started to unravel and folks realized that this was probably much bigger than anyone would have imagined,” said Samsundar.Support the show

Send us Fan MailDr. Scott Jensen, the GOP endorsed candidate for Minnesota state auditor and a lifelong Minnesotan, joined Liz Collin on her podcast. “Every day I make diagnoses and I make prognoses. And honestly, if I were to make a diagnosis of Minnesota's situation today, I would say we have an existential crisis in Minnesota," Dr. Jensen said."I think most Minnesotans realize that the path forward has to look dramatically different than the last eight years," he explained. He also highlighted some concerns in his opponent’s record and said he has “a fair amount to answer for.”"20 years of unchecked power in the state auditor's role has done nothing for Minnesota,” Jensen said.Support the show

Send us Fan MailDavid Hoch, the fraud researcher featured in Nick Shirley's viral videos about suspected fraud in Minnesota, spoke with Liz Collin on her podcast.Hoch, who hasn't stopped investigating fraud in all its forms in Minnesota and beyond, says now is a pivotal time in America — especially with the midterm elections coming up.He spoke about some of the latest issues he’s investigating, how his family has disowned him, and how Minnesotans and Americans are standing "at that fork in the road.""You gotta decide ... either with me and you support what I do, or you're against me and you oppose what I do — and you support fraud and you support the destruction of our country," Hoch said.Support the show

Send us Fan MailJohn Nagel, the Republican nominee who is running against Ilhan Omar for the U.S. House of Representatives in Minnesota’s Fifth District, joined Liz Collin on her podcast.In speaking about Omar's congressional record — and the controversies swirling around her and her citizenship status — Nagel did not mince words“She is the most anti-American person that I've ever met in my entire life. I can't believe that somebody like this was elected to represent Minnesota of all places. How did this happen?” he said. He also explained how "people that have voted Democrat in the past have come out and said, I'm gonna vote for you. They want security, they want enforcement. They're tired of being lied to, they are tired of their taxes going up."However, Nagel also highlighted the need to put party politics aside. “I wish people would quit saying Democrat and Republican. I wish they'd just say Minnesotan," Nagel said.Support the show

Send us Fan MailCristine Trooien, the executive director of Minnesota Partnership for Achievement, joined Liz Collin on her podcast. Trooien founded the Minnesota Parents Alliance and has been advocating for better public education for years.With school board candidates supporting socialism, the Pledge for Transliberation, and other "ideological priorities," Trooien explained how the future of Minnesota will be decided in the upcoming school district elections."It is disappointing, it's stunning, and it doesn't need to be this way," Trooien said in discussing the situation before the upcoming school board elections.She also pointed out how the Minnesota Parents Alliance provides an important voting guide — available on MinnesotaParents.org. The guide can help voters choose the right school board members who can best manage "the most consequential decisions" for "students and tax dollars,” Trooien said.Support the show