Mississippi
'MOGE' audit uncovers nonprofits' 'incredibly wasteful' spending of taxpayer funds: state official
EXCLUSIVE: An audit by Mississippi state auditor Shad White found several instances of “incredibly wasteful” expenditures of state HIV/AIDS grants, as President Donald Trump has been criticized for cutting similar funding via the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
White said his report shows funds meant for HIV/AIDS issues were spent by some recipients on a “Queer-ceanara” – a “Latinx pride month event” based off the Spanish term “Quinceañera” for a girl’s 15th birthday celebration.
“We’ve been following the model that President Trump and DOGE set in digging into taxpayer funds here in Mississippi,” White told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview about updates to what is being called “MOGE,” or Mississippi’s version of Elon Musk’s DOGE government efficiency work.
“We’re particularly looking now at grants that are being passed from state agencies over to nonprofits, and our latest findings are really just a slap in the face to taxpayers, unfortunately,” he said.
MISSISSIPPI MUSK: STATE AUDITOR’S ‘MOGE’ REPORT FINDS $400M IN GOVERNMENT WASTE
“So what we started doing is digging into grants that were designed to pay for tests, to test people for HIV/AID – and so those grants were flowing through the Mississippi Department of Health… And when you dig into how [some] nonprofits are spending the money, you see that it’s incredibly wasteful.”
White said taxpayer funds meant for constructive means were also spent on cab rides in the overnight hours 1,000 miles away in New York City over a several-day period.
“[That] looked like bar-hopping,” he said.
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Elon Musk, left, and Mississippi state auditor Shad White. (Reuters/IMAGN)
White remarked that if that kind of funding “abuse” could happen in a red state like the Magnolia State, it may only be the tip of the iceberg compared to more financially permissive blue states.
“Our audit shows that when you dig into how this money is actually being spent, it’s not actually helping people with HIV/AIDS. It’s not helping to test folks for HIV. It’s instead just being wasted.”
At the same time, the Trump administration’s National Institutes of Health has been under fire for similar cuts in its own DOGE efforts, with one CNN report citing a critic claiming “people will die.”
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The network looked into changes made in a Health and Human Services database, and one source said they had been getting texts from concerned people.
Back in Jackson, White said the HIV/AIDS funding audit is only the latest in his office’s wide-ranging efforts to curb waste or fraud in terms of state taxpayer monies.
“DOGE has highlighted in particular how grants passed down from the federal government to state governments, and then to non-profits, are really a massive, massive fraud risk,” he said.
“Our audit here proves that the craziest kind of stuff that you see at the federal level and the craziest stuff that may see in California or New York is happening in red states too. Every single state needs to be following President Trump’s lead.”
Odds of winning the Powerball and Mega Millions are NOT in your favor
Odds of hitting the jackpot in Mega Millions or Powerball are around 1-in-292 million. Here are things that you’re more likely to land than big bucks.
The Mississippi Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 17, 2025, results for each game:
Winning Mississippi Match 5 numbers from Dec. 17 drawing
05-14-24-31-33
Check Mississippi Match 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 3 numbers from Dec. 17 drawing
Midday: 0-3-8, FB: 8
Evening: 6-8-3, FB: 7
Check Cash 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 4 numbers from Dec. 17 drawing
Midday: 3-5-3-0, FB: 8
Evening: 8-0-9-4, FB: 7
Check Cash 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash Pop numbers from Dec. 17 drawing
Midday: 02
Evening: 05
Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Story continues below gallery.
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
Winnings of $599 or less can be claimed at any authorized Mississippi Lottery retailer.
Prizes between $600 and $99,999, may be claimed at the Mississippi Lottery Headquarters or by mail. Mississippi Lottery Winner Claim form, proper identification (ID) and the original ticket must be provided for all claims of $600 or more. If mailing, send required documentation to:
Mississippi Lottery Corporation
P.O. Box 321462
Flowood, MS
39232
If your prize is $100,000 or more, the claim must be made in person at the Mississippi Lottery headquarters. Please bring identification, such as a government-issued photo ID and a Social Security card to verify your identity. Winners of large prizes may also have the option of setting up electronic funds transfer (EFT) for direct deposits into a bank account.
Mississippi Lottery Headquarters
1080 River Oaks Drive, Bldg. B-100
Flowood, MS
39232
Mississippi Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing date. For detailed instructions and necessary forms, please visit the Mississippi Lottery claim page.
When are the Mississippi Lottery drawings held?
- Cash 3: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Cash 4: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Match 5: Daily at 9:30 p.m. CT.
- Cash Pop: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Mississippi editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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A Mississippi restaurant has made a short list of the hottest new restaurants in America for 2025. Esquire named the 33 best new places to eat.
“… This has been the Year of the Good Time,” writer Joshua David Stein noted. “A good time not in an ‘ostrich in the sand’ way or in a ‘decline and fall of the Roman Empire’ mode. A good time founded on the recognition that good times — with friends around a table, breaking bread — are more important than ever in chaotic, topsy-turvy years like these.”
The national list includes places that meet what Esquire’s Food & Drinks Editor Jeff Hordinier calls “’the five C’s’ —we’re looking for a sweet spot of hospitality that incorporates comfort, creativity, cool, community, and (of course) excellent cooking.”
Which Mississippi seafood place did Esquire call one of the best new restaurants?
Siren Social Club in Gulfport made the Esquire list of the Top 33 new restaurants in the U.S. Chef Adam Sumrall and his wife and business partner Tresse Sumrall recently attended a party in New York City to celebrate the honor.
“The old building used to be a mortuary, but it’s got plenty of life in it now. Festooned with images of tropical flora and ruled by a statue of an orange enchantress who looks ready for the Life of a Showgirl world tour, Siren Social Club makes it clear from the outset that you are here to shake off the cobweb,” chef Amethyst Ganaway wrote for Esquire.
The Sumralls opened Siren on Halloween night in 2024. It’s in the same building a Hotel Vela, a boutique option in Gulf Coast hospitality. The pair also run White Pillars in Biloxi.
They excel at elevated dining experiences in fun, elegant settings. The Michelin guide also gave both Siren Social Club and White Pillars nods in its first American South’s 2025 Recommended Restaurants list.
“Siren Social Club dares to be different,” the guide notes.
Southern Living also named it one of the 20 new restaurants in the South earlier this year.
“Swanky and cool, it’s a fun spot for early birds and night owls alike,” wrote Senior Food Editor Josh Miller.
What’s on the Siren Social Club menu?
Chef Adam Sumrall brings Southern cooking paired with haute cuisine training. He’s a graduate of Ole Miss and the Culinary Institute of America, according to the Hotel Vela website. The McComb native won the King of American Seafood title at the 2021 Great American Seafood Cook-off in New Orleans. He’s a James Beard Foundation semi-finalist for best chef in the South who’s been featured on several cooking shows. Sumrall won Food Network’s “Alex vs America.”
“Their admirably robust menu indulges coastal cravings via seasonal oysters and Gulf shrimp while appeasing land lovers with steakhouse favorites and handmade pastas,” Miller wrote.
Esquire highlighted the “luxe party food,” particularly crispy chicken with hot honey, thousand-layer potatoes, beef Wellington and a shrimp cocktail that comes with buttered crackers.
Current menu listings include a caviar service, beef tartare and pork chop paillard.
When can I go to Siren Social Club?
According to the website, Siren Social Club is open 5-9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and 5-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
It’s at 1409 24th Ave., Gulfport.
Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with USA TODAY Network. Email her at bbolden@gannett.com.
Odds of winning the Powerball and Mega Millions are NOT in your favor
Odds of hitting the jackpot in Mega Millions or Powerball are around 1-in-292 million. Here are things that you’re more likely to land than big bucks.
The Mississippi Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 16, 2025, results for each game:
Winning Mississippi Match 5 numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
02-09-13-18-29
Check Mississippi Match 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 3 numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
Midday: 3-3-2, FB: 4
Evening: 5-9-3, FB: 9
Check Cash 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 4 numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
Midday: 3-9-2-0, FB: 4
Evening: 9-8-3-6, FB: 9
Check Cash 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash Pop numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
Midday: 05
Evening: 02
Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Story continues below gallery.
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
Winnings of $599 or less can be claimed at any authorized Mississippi Lottery retailer.
Prizes between $600 and $99,999, may be claimed at the Mississippi Lottery Headquarters or by mail. Mississippi Lottery Winner Claim form, proper identification (ID) and the original ticket must be provided for all claims of $600 or more. If mailing, send required documentation to:
Mississippi Lottery Corporation
P.O. Box 321462
Flowood, MS
39232
If your prize is $100,000 or more, the claim must be made in person at the Mississippi Lottery headquarters. Please bring identification, such as a government-issued photo ID and a Social Security card to verify your identity. Winners of large prizes may also have the option of setting up electronic funds transfer (EFT) for direct deposits into a bank account.
Mississippi Lottery Headquarters
1080 River Oaks Drive, Bldg. B-100
Flowood, MS
39232
Mississippi Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing date. For detailed instructions and necessary forms, please visit the Mississippi Lottery claim page.
When are the Mississippi Lottery drawings held?
- Cash 3: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Cash 4: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Match 5: Daily at 9:30 p.m. CT.
- Cash Pop: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Mississippi editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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