President Donald Trump on Thursday warned he could invoke the rarely used Insurrection Act of 1807 to send federal troops into Minnesota to suppress ongoing protests sparked by his administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement in Minneapolis.
The escalation followed a confrontation Wednesday in which a federal immigration officer wounded a man after being attacked with a shovel and a broom handle, inflaming tensions already high since an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot Minneapolis resident Renee Good earlier this month.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to deploy the U.S. military or federalize the National Guard under the Insurrection Act to enforce federal authority over the objections of state leaders, a move that would bypass traditional limits on using active-duty forces for domestic law enforcement.
"If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the patriots of ICE, who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the Insurrection Act, which many presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great state,” Trump said in a social media post.
Presidents have invoked the law more than two dozen times, most recently in 1992, when President George H.W. Bush used it to quell unrest in Los Angeles at the request of local authorities.
"I’m making a direct appeal to the president: Let’s turn the temperature down. Stop this campaign of retribution. This is not who we are,” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, said on X.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he would challenge any such action in court.
He is already suing to block the Department of Homeland Security’s immigration surge, which the agency says has resulted in more than 2,500 arrests since Nov. 29 as part of an operation in the Twin Cities known as Metro Surge.
The operation expanded when ICE sent about 2,000 officers and agents to the area in early January. ICE is a DHS agency.
In Minneapolis, smoke filled the streets Wednesday night near the site of the latest shooting as federal officers wearing gas masks and helmets fired tear gas into a small crowd. Protesters responded by throwing rocks and setting off fireworks.
Demonstrations have become common in Minneapolis since Good was fatally shot Jan. 7. Agents who have pulled people from their cars and homes have been confronted by angry bystanders demanding they leave.
"This is an impossible situation that our city is being put in, and at the same time we are trying to find a way forward to keep people safe,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of three people who said they were questioned or detained in recent days.
Two are Somali and one is Hispanic, and all three are U.S. citizens.
The lawsuit seeks to halt what the ACLU describes as racial profiling and warrantless arrests. The federal government did not immediately comment.
Similar lawsuits have been filed in Los Angeles and Chicago and, despite initial success, have often stalled on appeal.
In Chicago last year, a judge ordered a senior U.S. Border Patrol official to provide nightly briefings following claims that agents used excessive force during protests. Three days later, an appeals court halted the requirement.
DHS said in a statement that federal law enforcement officers on Wednesday stopped a driver from Venezuela who was in the United States illegally. The driver fled, crashed into a parked car and ran on foot, the agency said.
Officers caught up to the suspect, and two other people arrived. The three then attacked the officer, DHS said.
"Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life,” DHS said. The confrontation occurred about 4.5 miles (7.2 kilometers) from where Good was killed.
Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the wounded man did not suffer life-threatening injuries. His account largely matched DHS’s description. DHS later said the other two men were also in the country illegally and were from Venezuela.
The FBI said several government vehicles were damaged and property was stolen when agents responded to the shooting. Photos showed broken windows and graffiti. A reward of up to $100,000 is being offered for information. The FBI’s Minneapolis office did not immediately respond to requests for additional details.
St. Paul Public Schools, which enrolls more than 30,000 students, said it will offer online learning options for students who do not feel safe attending in person. Schools will be closed next week until Thursday to prepare.
Minneapolis Public Schools, with a similar enrollment, is also offering temporary remote learning options. The University of Minnesota said it will begin the new term next week with different instructional formats depending on the class.