CapCon’s top 10 stories of 2025
Fraud, theft in social welfare programs featured in four stories
As we end 2025, Michigan Capitol Confidential would like to share its top ten most read stories of the year.
CapCon’s mission is to provide unique, informative stories that educate our readers on government happenings and how they affect Michigan residents.
We will continue in 2026 to equip residents with the knowledge to hold governments in the state accountable.
Our tenth-most popular story of the year concerned how food stamp fraud has devastated taxpayers after fraud in the program increased 387% from 2023 to 2024.
CapCon’s ninth-most read story of 2025 was about Attorney General Dana Nessel’s hypocrisy: She announced she will target the oil industry even while 77 members of her staff drive gas-powered vehicles.
Coming in at eighth place was the tale of two electric vehicle makers that pocketed $900,000 in taxpayer subsidies and then closed up shop.
The seventh-most read article concerns a practice of the Department of Natural Resources, by which it enters private land without a warrant — and how some legislators have responded.
In sixth place was an article about the state’s botched handling of Medicaid, Medicare and food stamp benefits. Due to errors, state taxpayers now owe the federal government $415 million.
When we entered a new legislative term at the start of the year, CapCon highlighted the good, bad, and ugly of the previous term, which was controlled by a Democratic trifecta. The analysis of that term earned a spot in fifth place.
It appears, based on the number of page views, that CapCon readers were eager to stay abreast of the state’s mishandling of taxpayer dollars. This is why a story about criminals looting $250 million worth of monthly food benefits came in fourth place.
In third place was a story about a Grosse Pointe school board trustee who vowed to stay in office after being threatened by a member of the public during a school board meeting. The aggressive commentator invoked “Luigi,” the same name as the man who allegedly murdered UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City in December 2024.
A state worker reported theft in the food stamp program and was fired for allegedly doing a good deed. Readers made this issue the second-most popular story of 2025.
And the most read story of the year was about a company that was offered a $6 billion taxpayer subsidy by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation in hopes it would set up shop in the state. The company “no.”
CapCon would like to thank our readers for their interest and support. We look forward to providing more investigative stories in 2026.
Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.