Who is Nick Shirley? YouTuber accused of exposing Minnesota daycare fraud in trending investigation (Image via Getty)

Nick Shirley is a YouTuber who suddenly became a big name online after posting a viral video about Minnesota daycares. On December 26, he shared a YouTube video titled “I Investigated Minnesota’s Billion Dollar Fraud Scandal.

” The video spread fast on social media and sparked heavy debate.In the video, Nick Shirley claims that some daycare centers in Minnesota are not running at all but are still getting large amounts of government money. He filmed himself visiting these places and talking to people nearby. Many clips from the video were later shared on Instagram and X, where they gained millions of views.Nick Shirley calls himself an independent journalist. He is best known for street interviews and direct questions.

He has also spoken about government spending and immigration issues before, according to Reuters. In October 2025, Nick Shirley even spoke to President Donald Trump about his reporting during a visit to the Oval Office.His new video has now drawn attention from politicians, including a sitting member of Congress, and has raised serious questions. As of now, all claims in the video remain allegations, and no official response has been issued by Minnesota’s leadership.

Nick Shirley’s Minnesota daycare video draws political attention and online backlash

In the video, YouTuber Nick Shirley is seen visiting daycare centers across Minnesota while pretending he wants to enroll his son. He claims many places were locked, silent, or had no children inside.One location shown is called “Quality Learing Center,” where the word “learning” appears misspelled. In an Instagram clip, Nick Shirley asks a person nearby what they think about the center. He then says the daycare received $1.9 million this year and was supposed to have 99 children.The person responds,“I haven’t seen any kids. I’ve been here since 2017.”YouTuber Nick Shirley later captioned the post,“Want to become a multimillionaire without doing anything? Move to Minnesota and start a daycare!”He also wrote,“This daycare that can’t even spell ‘learning’ right has received millions of dollars.”In another moment, a woman approaches Nick Shirley and accuses him of being ICE. She warns people inside not to open the doors. Nick Shirley replies that he is a YouTuber, not ICE. The woman responds,“Go away. You’re not welcome here.

Shame on you.”Nick Shirley later described the situation as,“A prime example of the billions of dollars in fraud happening right now in Minnesota.”He also claimed,“This daycare received $1,900,000 in tax-exempt funding from CCAP in 2025.”The video caught the attention of Congressman Tom Emmer, who posted on X,“Four million dollars of hard-earned tax dollars going to an education center that can’t even spell learning correctly. Care to explain this one, @tim_walz?”As of now, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and his team have not responded publicly to any of these allegations.Also Read: