As recent cyberattack incidents threaten water supply systems across multiple states, some officials are saying Iran may be to blame while President Donald Trump is pointing a finger at a state run by a former Democratic rival.
The water supplies of at least seven states, including Minnesota and Michigan, have been targeted by these largely unprecedented attacks as of Saturday, The New York Times reported. Anonymous officials cited by the outlet said it is likely, but not yet certain, that Iran — which the U.S. is currently at war with — was responsible for the cyberattacks. Trump, however, hinted at there being another possible culprit during a cabinet meeting Friday at Camp David.
“I blame it on Minnesota because they are grossly incompetent,” Trump said at the meeting, Politico reported. He went on to call the blue state’s Democratic Gov. Tim Walz “corrupt.”
“Iran has bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota,” the president added, according to the outlet. “I don’t think there was an Iranian cyberattack. I think Minnesota ought to get its act together.”
At the time, Minnesota was the only state identified to have been targeted in the attacks. Michigan was confirmed to have been targeted as well the following day, The New York Times reported. The other five states considered to also be targets have not yet been named as of Saturday afternoon.
As of yet, none of the targeted states’ water supplies were altered to become harmful to drink, the outlet reported.
Walz responded to Trump’s apparent insinuation that his administration was to blame for the cyberattacks, writing in a Friday X post that the president “knows exactly who is responsible for this attack, and knows that other states were hit too.”
Trump knows exactly who is responsible for this attack, and knows that other states were hit too.
This is what modern warfare looks like, and it further illustrates there’s no plan to win a war with Iran. https://t.co/e70UpK65P6
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) July 31, 2026
“This is what modern warfare looks like, and it further illustrates there’s no plan to win a war with Iran,” the governor added.
An AP-NORC survey conducted from July 23–27 found that 64% of U.S. adults, including 68% of independents and 37% of Republicans, believed the Trump administration’s war in Iran was not “worth fighting.” Eighteen U.S. service members have been killed in the war as of Saturday afternoon.
Anonymous officials told the outlet Saturday that, while the investigation into the origins of the cyberattacks was not yet conclusive and lacked forensic proof, Iran is the most likely perpetrator, as the Middle Eastern nation has gone after similar water systems in the past.
The mayor of a small Minnesota city affected by the attacks likewise told the outlet he is “getting bits and pieces of information from the state of Minnesota.” While the FBI reportedly “are pretty sure it’s Iranian actors,” the mayor claims, they are reluctant to state this publicly.
“The FBI is aware of recent public reporting around Water and Wastewater (WWS) sectors,” a spokesperson for the Bureau told the Daily Caller News Foundation in a statement. “The FBI and our interagency partners are fully engaged to protect critical infrastructure and we remain well-equipped to protect against cyber threats of all varieties.”
A Department of War spokesperson told the DCNF that the Pentagon did not have anything to provide.
Neither Walz’s office nor the office of Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer immediately responded to the DCNF’s requests for comment. The White House referred the DCNF to Trump’s comments.
Walz was notably his party’s vice-presidential nominee for the 2024 general election, losing on a ticket with presidential nominee Kamala Harris to Trump and his running mate, now-Vice President JD Vance.
The governor initially planned to seek a third term in November 2025 but dropped out of the race in January 2026 as his state continued to make headlines for a massive fraud scandal largely linked to the Somali community in the Twin Cities area.
Vance in June referred Walz to the Department of Justice’s Fraud Division for a criminal investigation, writing on X at the time that if the Democrat and his administration “facilitated fraud, lied under oath about what they knew, or harassed and intimated whistleblowers, they must face justice.”
(DCNF)
