A nearly 66-foot Uncle Sam-style nutcracker named Verne the Patriot now stands in Luverne, Minnesota, a small town that already has more nutcrackers than people.

The Trump administration is pausing more than $1 billion in Medicaid payments to California and Minnesota as part of its crackdown on fraud in federal programs, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Tuesday.

The families of two men who discovered through DNA tests that they were switched at birth 38 years ago are accusing a North Dakota hospital of robbing them of the lives they were supposed to lead.

An adult was shot in Minneapolis on Monday night near the area of a mass shooting that killed a man and injured four other men the night before, according to City Council member Jamal Osman.

BREAKING: Three people are dead and a police investigation is underway after a shooting in the Highland Park neighborhood of St. Paul on Monday.

President Trump is imposing 50% tariffs on a range of Canadian goods, from hockey equipment to alcoholic beverages, escalating the trade dispute between the two countries.

Three new women's world records have been set at the Lumberjack World Championships in Hayward, Wisconsin.

WATCH LIVE: Officials are discussing the effort to fight at least 15 wildfires raging in northern Minnesota.

BREAKING: Firefighters are working to put out a massive blaze at an apartment complex in St. Louis Park on Friday evening.

UPDATE: Minneapolis' air quality now ranked as world's worst as smoke from northern wildfires cloaks the region Thursday.

LIVE UPDATES: Events and other scheduled outdoor activities are being canceled across Minnesota as hazardous wildfire smoke continues to pour down from the north amid an extreme heat warning.

Pollution officials say the air quality levels are expected to reach the maroon category, which is a level considered hazardous for everyone, across east-central, central, southeast, south-central, west-central, north-central and northeastern Minnesota.

Much of Minnesota, including the metro, is under an air quality alert through Thursday due to a mix of wildfire smoke and extreme heat.

Three people are dead after a boat overturned on Lake Pepin on Saturday night, according to law enforcement officials in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

President Trump is accused of endangering children following an Islamophobic post about Twin Cities students.

Hannah Dugan, convicted of felony obstruction for directing a defendant away from ICE agents at her Milwaukee courthouse, was sentenced Wednesday to a $5,000 fine and no prison time.

The Minneapolis Police Department is investigating after a 17-year-old boy and three men were injured in a shooting on the city's northeast side early Monday.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has transferred $1 million from his former congressional account to a super PAC supporting Michael Alfonso, his 26-year-old son-in-law, who is running for Duffy's old Wisconsin seat.

More storms will develop Sunday evening in the Twin Cities as dangerous heat approaches.

Natasha Howard and Olivia Miles both scored 21 points and Cheryl Reeve tied the WNBA record for career coaching wins as the Minnesota Lynx beat the Dallas Wings 85-77.

One person is dead and eight others are hurt in a string of weekend shootings across Minneapolis.

Police in St. Paul, Minnesota, are asking for the public's help to find 15-year-old Daymarieon Comer, a non-verbal boy with autism who was last seen Saturday night at Mall of America.

A 19-year-old man is injured after a shooting in north Minneapolis on Friday, according to police.

An alleged leader of the largest pandemic-era fraud scheme in the country was arrested overseas after being on the run for more than four years, according to federal officials.

U.S. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, at a Wednesday evening Capitol Hill event, said that Somali immigrants who don't assimilate "should go the hell back to where they came from" — remarks that drew sharp criticism.

Legendary musician Lionel Richie had to cut his performance short Wednesday night in St. Paul, Minnesota, leaving fans with many questions.

Thursday will be quiet and comfortable in the Twin Cities as a heat wave approaches.

The Twin Cities will start to dry out Wednesday ahead of a comfortable end to the workweek.

WATCH LIVE: The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office has completed its reviews of six cases involving embattled ex-medical examiner Michael McGee.

Minneapolis police are now investigating two triple shootings that both occurred Monday.

Showers and thunderstorms are likely Tuesday in the Twin Cities as a cold front moves through.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly trading three-time All-Star Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team trade that sends Nic Claxton to the Chicago Bulls.

JUST IN: A U.S. District Judge ruled the Trump administration's use of grand jury subpoenas against Minnesota state and local officials was retaliatory and unlawful, finding no legitimate investigatory justification for them.

Monday is a #Top10WxDay in the Twin Cities, featuring a mix of sun and clouds.

FRIDAY STORMS: We're seeing lots of wild hail videos from the traffic cams along 694 in the northern Twin Cities. See the latest forecast here: https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/minnesota-weather-storms-possible-june-19-2026/ 

James Burrows, the co-creator of "Cheers" and prolific television director who worked on hits including "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," has died. He was 85 years old.

A federal judge ruled ICE failed to show enough evidence to justify holding Salah Sarsour, a legal permanent resident detained for 80 days after speaking out in support of Palestinian rights.

Senior U.S. officials on Wednesday dictated the 14 points of the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran, reading the text of the agreement to reporters on a phone call.

A ground stop has been issued at MSP Airport Wednesday afternoon due to severe weather. See where thunderstorm watches are in effect.

Aimee Bock filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on June 16, contesting both her guilty verdict and the sentencing guidelines.

WATCH LIVE: DOJ officials in Minneapolis announce charges for "conspiracy to impede or injure federal officers.”

BREAKING NEWS: Police in north Minneapolis are looking for an individual who shot at officers on Monday and are advising some residents to shelter in place.

WATCH LIVE: Federal officials are responding after Vance Boelter pleaded guilty to federal charges of stalking and shooting Minnesota lawmakers.

JUST IN: Vance Boelter pleaded guilty Thursday to the shootings of two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses as part of an agreement with federal prosecutors.

Vance Boelter, the man accused of a deadly attack on Minnesota lawmakers, is expected to plead guilty to federal charges Thursday morning.

UPDATE: Law enforcement officers arrested a man in south Minneapolis Tuesday evening following an hours-long standoff.

Attorneys for the president of Wisconsin's largest mosque say he is being denied basic medical care for diabetes and has lost 30 pounds in the two months since he was detained by immigration officers.

Vance Boelter, the man accused of shooting two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses nearly a year ago, will not face the death penalty on federal charges.

A congressional report released Monday accuses senior Minnesota officials, including Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison, of ignoring clear warnings of widespread fraud in federally funded social programs as early as 2019.

Heat and humidity build this week in Minnesota as storm chances increase.