President Trump threatened Thursday to invoke the Insurrection Act to send U.S. military forces to Minnesota if state officials don’t stop what he called professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking ICE agents, dramatically escalating tensions in Minneapolis following the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good.
In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote: “If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., 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.”
The threat came one week after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old Minneapolis woman, sparking intense protests and marches by residents who say the shooting was unlawful. On Wednesday night, another shooting involving federal agents injured a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis.
The Insurrection Act allows the president to deploy federal military forces domestically during civil disorder, insurrection or rebellion. The law dates to 1807 and represents one of the most significant exceptions to the Posse Comitatus Act, which generally prohibits military forces from performing civilian law enforcement.
Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz responded with a direct appeal to Trump to tone down the rhetoric, writing “Let’s turn the temperature down. Stop this campaign of retribution. This is not who we are.”
The Department of Homeland Security has deployed approximately 3,000 ICE and Border Patrol agents to the Minneapolis area, a force that Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said dwarfs the city’s police department of roughly 600 officers.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the Insurrection Act is a tool at the president’s disposal, but only Trump can answer when he would invoke it. She accused Democratic elected officials of encouraging violence against federal law enforcement officers.
The act was last implemented in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush during the Los Angeles riots at the request of the governor, and hasn’t been used without coordination with a governor since the 1960s.
Democratic lawmakers condemned the threat. Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine told reporters Trump wants to use the military as his “palace guard.” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said if Trump invokes the act, he’s prepared to challenge the action in court.
Trump’s threats emerge amid ongoing protests by Minneapolis residents supporting their immigrant neighbors, as fears grow. Many residents feel under attack as ICE officers persist in targeting local businesses and homes.
On Wednesday night, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche accused Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Frey of terrorism, posting that the Minnesota insurrection is a direct result of a failed governor and aterrible mayor encouraging violence against law enforcement.
