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Trans athlete scandal spotlight back on Minnesota as softball lawsuit returns to court

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Trans athlete scandal spotlight back on Minnesota as softball lawsuit returns to court

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Attorneys representing three female high school softball players in Minnesota appeared before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit Thursday, asking the court to intervene in a lawsuit against Minnesota state agencies and Attorney General Keith Ellison for allowing a biological male athlete to compete against girls. 

The lawsuit, filed in spring 2025, was dismissed by U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud Sept. 19. But the plaintiffs and their attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) were determined to appeal the decision right away. 

ADF attorney Hal Frampton argued on behalf of the plaintiffs Thursday. 

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Champlin Park celebrates winning the state championship while Bloomington Jefferson looks on. (Amber Harding)

“The crux of our argument before the appellate court is that Title IX is for everyone. It protects fairness and safety in women’s sports in red states as well as blue states, and that when states allow men to compete in women’s sports it takes away women’s rights and women’s opportunities in violation of Title IX,” Frampton told Fox News Digital.

The lawsuit aims to have a transgender pitcher who led Champlain Park High School to a state championship last spring ruled ineligible to compete in girls softball and other biological male to be ineligible to play girls’ sports in the state. 

The Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit expedited the case to get an early hearing in January, which Frampton believes will be critical to potentially addressing the issue before the 2026 softball season starts. 

“We were really encouraged that the court expedited the argument so that they could have it in January, and we hope that signals they intend to issue an opinion before the start of softball season,” Frampton said.

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Since the lawsuit was originally dismissed in September, Minnesota and its Democratic leadership have come under immense scrutiny and arguably lost credibility due to the state’s growing welfare fraud scandal. 

Potentially billions of tax dollars, primarily stemming from a massive federal child nutrition program scandal estimated at over $9 billion in total fraud, a $250 million COVID-era food aid scheme and other significant Medicaid fraud cases have sown growing distrust in Ellison and Gov. Tim Walz. 

Walz recently dropped his bid for re-election amid growing criticism for his handling of the state’s fraud problem. 

“It certainly suggests the leadership in Minnesota should be focused on things other than taking girls’ rights away. It seems like they have bigger fish to fry,” Frampton said.

COALITION OF 207 WOMEN LAWMAKERS FILE AMICUS BRIEF IN SUPPORT OF PROTECTING FEMALE ATHLETES FOR SCOTUS REVIEW

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Just days after Frampton’s lawsuit was originally dismissed, the U.S. Department of Education and Department of Health and Human Services determined that Minnesota education agencies violated Title IX by allowing the trans pitcher, and other biological males, to compete in girls sports. 

“So, we were able to cite that to the appellate court, we were not able to cite that to the appellate court. It was not available when we were in front of the district court. So, we’re hopeful that they will take the enforcement agencies’ views into account,” Frampton added. 

After President Trump signed the “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” executive order in February, the Minnesota State High School League announced it would defy federal law by allowing transgender athletes to continue playing women’s sports. Ellison then claimed at a news conference April 22 that he received notice from the Department of Justice threatening legal action if the state did not follow the executive order. So, the attorney general decided to sue first.

Ellison has already filed his own lawsuit against Trump and the DOJ for trying to enforce its policies to protect girls sports in Minnesota. Ellison has bragged about “suing them first” regarding the issue. 

Within the state, hundreds of school board members have signed a letter urging leadership to amend its policies to only allow females to compete in girls sports. At the time of publication, 326 school board members in 125 districts in Minnesota had signed the letter.

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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a news conference on new gun legislation at Bloomington City Hall in Bloomington, Minn., Aug. 1, 2024. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

“Protecting fairness in women’s sports is paramount. The federal determination highlights how permitting males to compete on female teams displaces female athletes from podiums, denies them advancement opportunities, and diminishes their visibility and recognition in competitions. Female students in our districts and across Minnesota deserve equal chances to excel in sports, free from unfair physical advantages that biological differences confer,” the letter states. 

“Protecting the privacy and dignity interests of students is equally important. As the federal findings observe, allowing males into female-only locker rooms and restrooms leads to documented harms to female students’ safety, privacy, and access to educational activities.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Ellison’s office for comment. 

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Ellison’s office declined to respond, telling Fox News Digital, “We’ll decline to comment, so feel free to toss in another weird rant from Jack Brewer instead.”

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Wisconsin

Polaris to lay off 200 Wisconsin workers, close facility in Osceola

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Polaris to lay off 200 Wisconsin workers, close facility in Osceola



The move comes after Polaris announced it was separating from Indian Motorcycle.

Powersports company Polaris has announced it plans to wind down the operations at its facility in Osceola which specializes in manufacturing Indian Motorcycle.

The move impacts roughly 200 Wisconsin workers at the facility.

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On Jan. 27, during a fourth quarter and full year earnings call for 2025, Polaris said the company expects to sell Indian Motorcycle by the end of the first quarter of 2026 to Carolwood, a private equity firm based in Los Angeles. However the company plans to maintain some stake in the company.

Polaris officials said called the sale of Indian Motorcycle was a “difficult decision” and added it was a “move that we believe is best for Polaris and Indian Motorcycle.”

In a post on X, Wisconsin Democrat Sen. Tammy Baldwin said:

“We have seen this story in Wisconsin too many times – a private equity firm buys a company, hollows it out, & fires its workers, all to pad their profits. It’s simply wrong.”



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Midwest

Trump hits the road to sell economic wins, as Republicans brace for high-stakes midterm showdown

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Trump hits the road to sell economic wins, as Republicans brace for high-stakes midterm showdown

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Facing a rough political climate as his party aims to hold their House and Senate majorities in this year’s midterm elections, President Donald Trump on Tuesday kicks off what the White House says will be weekly stops in states with key ballot box showdowns.

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It’s part of the president’s push to showcase he’s working to combat rising prices, a top issue on the minds of Americans. And as the Trump administration reels amid two fatal shootings by federal agents in Minnesota this month of U.S. citizens protesting aggressive tactics to deport millions of undocumented migrants, it’s also an effort to pivot to the economy from immigration.

Trump’s first stop is Iowa, a one-time Midwestern battleground turned red-leaning state the president carried by double digits in 2024 where Republicans are now playing defense as they defend open Senate and gubernatorial seats, as well as three competitive GOP-controlled House districts.

In suburban Des Moines, Trump will visit a local business, meet with lawmakers, and deliver an address on the economy.

SHOWDOWN FOR THE HOUSE: DEMOCRATS, REPUBLICANS BRACE FOR HIGH-STAKES MIDTERM CLASH

President Donald Trump launched the year-long countdown to America’s 250th anniversary, with a stop at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, on July 3, 2025. (Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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“The economy is good. It’s all good. Prices are coming way down, and we have a lot of very positive news,” Trump touted as he departed for Iowa.

And ahead of the trip, a White House official told Fox News Digital, “Inflation has cooled, economic growth is accelerating, and real wages are up for American workers.”

Deep concerns over inflation boosted Trump and Republicans to sweeping victories at the ballot box in 2024, as they won back the White House and Senate and keep their House majority.

But Democrats say their decisive victories in November’s 2025 elections, and their overperformances in special elections and other ballot box showdowns last year, were fueled by their laser focus on affordability amid persistent inflation.

The president’s approval on the economy has consistently hovered in negative territory since last March, and has dragged down his overall approval ratings during his first year back in the White House.

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Among the most recent national polls — a Wall Street Journal survey conducted earlier this month put Trump’s approval rating on the economy at 44%-54%, and he stood at 35%-56% in a Reuters/Ipsos poll in the field this past weekend.

TRUMP VOWS HE’LL BE ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL ‘A LOT’ THIS YEAR

“Donald Trump has tanked the economy for working families, making the cost-of-living an inescapable hell for millions of Americans. Everyday Americans are drowning under the weight of rising costs, flat wages, high unemployment, and record layoffs — it’s no wonder they’re concerned about making ends meet,” Democratic National Committee Rapid Response Director Kendall Witmer argued in a statement.

But the Wall Street Journal poll indicated that congressional Republicans had an 11-point advantage over their Democratic rivals when it came to which party was better equipped to handle the economy.

Iowa is friendly ground for Trump, who convincingly won the state in his two presidential victories and one re-election defeat.

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President Donald Trump celebrates his victory in Iowa’s Republican presidential caucuses, at a campaign event in Des Moines on Jan. 15, 2024. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

But a memo from Democratic National Committee (DNC) Deputy Communications Director Abhi Rahman claimed, “However hard Trump tries to explain away his failing economy, it’s abundantly clear that Americans aren’t buying it, especially in Iowa, where Trump’s policies are raising costs for Iowans, devastating Iowa’s agricultural economy, and destroying thousands of jobs that working Iowans rely on.”

The White House disagrees, with the official arguing that “Iowans are better off with President Trump and Republican leadership,” noting that gas prices in the state “ranked the second lowest in the nation.”

And pointing to the various tax cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Trump’s domestic legislative achievement so far in his second term, the official said, “Iowans could see their wages rise up to $61,000 over the next four years.”

TRUMP CHEERS STEADY INFLATION NUMBERS AS AFFORDABILITY FIGHT SHAPES 2026 MIDTERM BATTLE

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The GOP, as it works to hold its congressional majorities, is dealing with a low propensity issue: MAGA voters who don’t always go to the polls when Trump’s name isn’t on the ballot.

But even though he’s not on the ballot this year, Trump pledged last week that he’ll be on the campaign trail “a lot” on behalf of fellow Republicans running in the midterms.

President Donald Trump gestures as he arrives to deliver remarks on the U.S. economy and affordability at the Mount Airy Casino Resort in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, Dec. 9, 2025. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

Trump made stops last month and earlier this month in the key battleground states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Michigan to highlight his accomplishments on the economy.

And the weekly trips advertised by the White House are a big change from Trump’s first term, when the president didn’t start his campaign travel blitz until Labor Day.

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Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters emphasized in a Fox News Digital interview earlier this month that “the President of the United States is our secret weapon… He’s laser focused.”

“We got to make sure we turn our voters out, and we got to make sure that we have people energized. And there’s nobody that can energize our base more than President Trump,” Gruters added.

And the White House official said that the president “has always been most in his element when he’s interacting with everyday Americans, and the President’s domestic travel will allow him to most effectively underscore how this Administration has and continues to deliver economic prosperity for the American people.”

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Democrats are just fine with Trump hitting the road.

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“Trump has historically low approval ratings because he has put America last, sold out working families to hand out favors to billionaires, and made life unaffordable. Hitting the road will only remind Americans of his failures and force GOP candidates to tie themselves to his cratering presidency,” DNC chair Ken Martin argued in a statement to Fox News Digital.

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Detroit, MI

Detroit handling dozens of water main breaks amid frigid stretch

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Detroit handling dozens of water main breaks amid frigid stretch


The Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) is dealing with dozens of water main breaks around the city as a cold snap continues.

Gary Brown, the DWSD director, said Tuesday morning that there were “at least a couple dozen” water main breaks.

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Water main break flooding:

At least three of those water main breaks led to flooding, which then resulted in frozen streets.

People on Laing near Britain, not far from Morang, have reportedly been complaining about a water main break since Monday, and 911 dispatchers have fielded calls about vehicles stuck in the ice and water.

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Another water main break flooded about ⅔ of Bringard near Barlow, which is south of Eight Mile, before freezing.

Also on the east side, a water main break with less severe flooding was reported on Dequindre near State Fair.

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What they’re saying:

“This is historic, regionally, to have this deep of a freeze for this long of a period of time,” Brown said.

According to Brown, the breaks have been the result of frigid temperatures and shifting.

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What’s next:

Brown said the department is prioritizing which breaks get repaired first. 

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“The prioritization is any person or street that may be completely out of water,” he said, noting that as of Monday night, no residents were out of water.

While crews work to repair the breaks, the water department is urging residents to be patient.

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“When you’ve got 30 or 40 water main breaks, we can’t get to everyone at the same time,” Brown said.

DetroitWinter Weather



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