The American Civil Liberties Union, the National Women's Law Center and the National Center for Law and Economic Justice said in the lawsuit against the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that they sought correspondence between federal officials and pro-Trump right-wing online influencer Nick Shirley, Reuters news agency reported.
A viral video by Shirley in late 2025 was publicly amplified and credited by senior administration officials as the basis for the attempted funding restrictions.
The video alleged some childcare centers in Minnesota were fraudulent. News reports subsequently said the claims were misleading and exaggerated.
Earlier this month, HHS rescinded the $10 billion freeze on child care subsidies and social services funding for five states governed by Democrats – California, Illinois, Colorado, New York and Minnesota – after legal obstacles got in the way of the freeze attempts.
A federal judge blocked the government from freezing the funds earlier this year for the duration of a lawsuit against the freeze brought by the states.
Trump, who earlier this year ordered an aggressive immigration crackdown in Minnesota, has alleged that Somali communities in the state have engaged in fraud.
Rights groups say the crackdown has created a fearful environment and that Trump has used isolated fraud cases as an excuse to target immigrants. They also dismiss Trump's ability to tackle fraud, citing pardons from him to those who have faced fraud convictions in the past.
MNA