A Minnesota state representative confessed her own apparently unlawful immigration to the United States to persuade her fellow lawmakers to support allowing illegal immigrants to continue receiving public health care benefits.
On the state House floor on Monday, Rep. Kaohly Vang Her, a Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party member, admitted that she is illegally in the country, claiming that her father misrepresented familiar relations on federal documents.
Her’s confession quickly went viral among conservative political commentators and media outlets, prompting her to recant the admission during a Monday interview with the Minnesota Reformer.
‘My family was just smarter in how we illegally came here.’
Her’s comments come amid violent riots in Los Angeles and escalating tensions in New York City over President Donald Trump’s efforts to solve the country’s illegal immigration crisis.
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Rioters confront National Guardsmen outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 2025, amid anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protests. Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
Her, who was born in Laos, made the confession while advocating for illegal immigrants receiving the state’s public health care, MinnesotaCare.
During her speech on the House floor, Her became emotional, discussing her personal relationships with representatives across the aisle.
“This is not about impugning anybody’s motives, but I would like for you to put a face to the name,” Her told Republicans.
She explained how her father, who worked at the U.S. consulate, brought her family from Laos to America at the end of the Vietnam War by falsifying immigration paperwork.
Her stated that her uncle had worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development and was immediately eligible to come to the U.S. because of his government work, while her immediate family did not qualify for the same expedited pipelines. However, her uncle’s mother had passed away, so Her’s father claimed their grandmother was their mother on federal documents to circumvent their ineligibility.
In his role at the U.S. consulate, Her’s father was responsible for filing paperwork for refugees immigrating to America.
“My father, as the one processing the paperwork, put my grandmother down as his mother,” Her stated.
“And so, I am illegal in this country,” she declared. “My parents are illegal here in this country.”
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Photo by John Moore/Getty Images
“I tell you this story because I want you to think about who it is that you’re calling ‘illegal.’ My family was just smarter in how we illegally came here,” Her added. “My family broke the law to come here.”
She encouraged her fellow lawmakers to support public health care for illegal aliens, stating that she has “paid more into this country than it has ever given to me.”
Her’s emotional testimony did not appear to sway Republicans, who voted to strip public health care coverage for illegal aliens.
Illegal immigrants residing in Minnesota were allowed to enroll for the state’s public health care beginning in January following Democratic-backed legislation that passed in 2023. Over 20,000 individuals enrolled. Those illegal aliens will be removed from the MinnesotaCare program at the end of 2025 if Monday’s measure passes the Senate.
Her attempted to rescind the illegal entry confession during a Monday interview with the Reformer, explaining that she and her family are now U.S. citizens.
However, her efforts to clarify the situation uncovered further incriminating details about her family’s unlawful entry.
Again, Her admitted that her father broke the law by falsifying the family’s immigration paperwork and that he used his role at the U.S. consulate to expedite processing.
Further, according to the Reformer, Her’s “uncle” was not actually a familial relative but a family friend. The illegitimate uncle’s position at the USAID allowed him prioritized entry into the U.S., which Her’s family would not have qualified for without misleadingly claiming him as a relative.
“Her said her father technically broke the law when he filled out paperwork for the family to come to the U.S. as refugees. He did so to expedite the process to come to the U.S., though they would have come to America anyway,” the Reformer stated.
Her claimed her family would have been eligible to come to the U.S. but that her father’s unlawful actions allowed them to speed up the process.
“Technically, you would say my father broke the law, right? But we would have come anyway,” she stated.
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