The wife of a Republican state senator in Michigan has been charged with embezzling money from a local chamber of commerce.

According to The Detroit News, "On Friday, Kellie Lauwers, who had been the treasurer of the Yale Area Chamber of Commerce, was charged with one count of embezzlement and one count of using a computer to commit a crime, according to a complaint filed in Port Huron's 72nd District Court and obtained by The Detroit News. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years behind bars. The warrant was signed by Michael Frezza, an assistant attorney general. The Michigan State Police conducted the investigation, according to the court records."

Per a police report, authorities searched Lauwers' bank accounts under warrant, and "the returned bank data revealed 11 fraudulent transactions occurring between December 2022 and July 2024. These transactions included unauthorized cash withdrawals from the chamber's Tri-County Bank account and deposits of checks drawn from the same account and made payable to Lauwers. One such transaction for $4,000, dated March 28, 2024, was mobile deposited and bore Lauwers' endorsement."

Her husband, Dan Lauwers, is the minority floor leader of the Michigan Senate Republican caucus.

Financial fraud scandals can often swiftly end the career of state political officials.

In 2019, the then-chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, Robin Hayes, was indicted on wire fraud and money laundering charges, over a scheme by the state GOP to funnel an illegal $240,000 donation from a wealthy businessman to a state insurance commissioner. More recently, the Florida lawmaker behind the infamous "Don't Say Gay" bill pleaded guilty to a scheme to steal $150,000 from pandemic relief programs.

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) criticized the Pentagon for wasteful "impulse purchases" totaling $93 billion in September, the highest monthly spending since 2008, as the military risks depleting munitions amid Trump's Iran war. Government watchdog Open The Books detailed extravagant expenditures including $225 million on furniture alone, with $12,000 spent on fruit basket stands and $60,000 on premium Herman Miller chairs. The Pentagon purchased $2 million in Alaskan king crab and $1.8 million in musical instruments, including a $98,329 Steinway grand piano, $26,000 violin, and $21,750 handmade Japanese flute. Foreign purchases reached $6.6 billion, over $1 billion above the previous record. Ernst accused "binge-buying bureaucrats" of burning through billions on frivolous items while taxpayers fund $1.5 trillion in defense spending. Open The Books CEO urged Secretary Hegseth to refocus on warfighting priorities.

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A federal judge appointed to the bench by Donald Trump issued a 111-page ruling Monday, finding that the president's own immigration enforcement machine likely ran an unconstitutional racial profiling operation targeting Black and Latino Minnesotans.

The ruling, filed in the District of Minnesota, found "clear" evidence that ICE and Border Patrol agents detained more than two dozen American citizens and legal residents during "Operation Metro Surge," a 3,000-officer invasion of the Twin Cities, based on skin color.

A Somali man was grabbed while walking to a mosque. A Hispanic Target worker was tackled and had an officer's knee pressed to his neck. A naturalized U.S. citizen was detained on his own front porch and threatened by an agent: "I don’t care if you’re a citizen, next time I’m going to take you. I don’t care if I have to do extra paperwork.”

Judge Eric Tostrud concluded the administration had adopted a policy authorizing stops and arrests "without reasonable suspicion" and "without probable cause," in apparent violation of the Fourth Amendment.

The judge still denied the injunction, ruling the plaintiffs couldn't prove they were likely to get grabbed again now that the surge has wound down.

"Though Plaintiffs have shown that Defendants likely maintained unconstitutional policies, Plaintiffs have not shown that irreparable injury is likely to befall them in the immediate future. This is largely owing to a significant reduction in the scope of Defendants’ Minnesota-based operations," the judge wrote.

The ruling stunned legal experts.

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, senior fellow at American Immigration Council, wrote on X, "This is HUGE. In a lawsuit against Operation Metro Surge, a Trump appointee rules that @DHSGov 'likely maintained unconstitional policies' during the massive ICE operation. However, 'largely owing to' ICE's decreased presence in Minneapolis, the judge denied a court order."

Ryan Goodman, chaired professor at NYU Law and co-editor-in-chief of Just Security, noted that the judge concluded, "Plaintiffs are likely to prevail on the merits of their Fourth Amendment claim."

"Big win for plaintiffs. Writing is on wall," he said, referring to Mubashir Khalif Hussen, Mahamed Eydarus and Jonathan Aguilar Garcia, who sued the Trump administration.