President Donald Trump says Iran wasn’t behind recent cyberattacks against dozens of water systems in Minnesota. Who is really to blame? Minnesota itself, according to the whiny 80-year-old leader. The governor of Minnesota pointed out how absurd that claim was Friday while noting that DOGE cuts meant state experts had to investigate the attacks themselves without sufficient federal support.
State officials in Minnesota told the New York Times this week that attacks on 36 municipal water systems had possibly come from hackers aligned with Iran. The officials cautioned that Iran hadn’t been definitively determined to be the source of the attacks and that more data would need to be examined.
The water systems had been breached without a ransom demand and focused on disruption rather than financial gain, which has led investigators to believe the attacks are state-backed. Early reports indicate the water is still safe to drink.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) published an advisory in April that warned pro-Iranian hackers were targeting U.S. energy and water infrastructure in retaliation for Trump’s war against Iran, which started Feb. 28.
Trump first talked about the cyberattacks unprompted on Friday during a publicly televised cabinet meeting from Camp David.
“We heard in Minnesota there was a cyberattack and they blame it on Iran,” said Trump. “I don’t think so. I blame it on Minnesota because they’re grossly incompetent.” Trump has publicly feuded with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who ran for Vice President with Kamala Harris on the 2024 Democratic presidential ticket.
“There was a cyberattack of 30 water plants,” continued Trump. “And I would blame it on Minnesota and the corrupt governor of Minnesota. They like to say, ‘ooh it’s Iran.’ Iran should be so lucky. Iran’s got bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota.”
Trump: “We heard in Minnesota there was a cyberattack and they blame it on Iran. I don’t think so. I blame it on Minnesota because they’re grossly incompetent. Iran’s got bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota.”
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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) July 31, 2026 at 8:35 AM
Trump went on with his cabinet meeting, with men like Marco Rubio talking about how the Big Boy President is doing such an amazing job. But when a handful of reporters eventually got to ask some questions at the end, Trump was asked about his incendiary comments about Minnesota.
“Can you rule out that Iran is behind the water attacks?” one reporter asked.
This time Trump went a step further, directly blaming Minnesota for apparently attacking itself:
Q: Can you rule out that Iran is behind the water attacks?
TRUMP: I don’t think so. I think that Minnesota is behind it. You know who is behind it? Minnesota. Because they’re grossly incompetent. I don’t think there was an Iranian cyberattack. I think Minnesota ought to get its act together.
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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) July 31, 2026 at 9:29 AM
It’s an absolutely ridiculous accusation, of course. And it’s the kind of thing that in any other era would be roundly condemned and become the focus of national media attention for days if not weeks.
The first breach of Minnesota’s systems was detected last Sunday, according to the New York Times, but it’s far from the first state to see cyber intrusions possibly linked to Iran during this war. The FBI and EPA released a warning on Thursday that at least seven states have had their water systems hacked, though the agencies didn’t name the states.
Gov. Walz tweeted in response to Trump’s wild accusations, pointing out that other states outside Minnesota have been impacted as well.
“Trump knows exactly who is responsible for this attack, and knows that other states were hit too,” wrote Walz. “This is what modern warfare looks like, and it further illustrates there’s no plan to win a war with Iran.”
Walz also noted that DOGE, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, had decimated the ability of the federal government to investigate these cyberattacks. “DOGE took an axe to CISA and left the U.S. exposed to cyber attacks,” wrote Walz. “Thankfully, our experts in Minnesota were able to identify the vulnerability quickly and work with local communities to stop it.”
CISA lost roughly a third of its workforce thanks to Elon Musk’s DOGE project, which has crippled the federal workforce and made the U.S. less able to respond to threats on everything from food safety to state-sponsored cyberattacks.
DOGE took an axe to CISA and left the U.S. exposed to cyber attacks. Thankfully, our experts in Minnesota were able to identify the vulnerability quickly and work with local communities to stop it.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) July 31, 2026
Trump has repeatedly claimed that the U.S. already won the war against Iran. But it’s never been clearer that he started a new war with no easy exit. If the U.S. leaves now, it effectively gives Iran control of the Strait of Hormuz, where 20% of the world’s oil passes. If the U.S. continues to bomb Iran in perpetuity, it depletes its munitions supply, making America less prepared for a potential war with a near-peer adversary like China.
Trump started a war he may have “won” militarily, but he lost strategically the moment he dropped the first bombs. And as long as he has no good options for ending the conflict, he’s just going to keep lashing out at his domestic enemies like the governor of Minnesota.
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