Amid lawsuits and protests, Trump signals changes to Minnesota immigration surge

MINNEAPOLIS — After “very good” phone calls with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on Monday, President Trump announced that border czar Tom Homan will be heading to the midwestern state to lead federal immigration enforcement efforts there.

The surge of agents to Minneapolis has resulted in waves of protest, legal action, and political backlash against the Trump administration, especially after the shooting deaths of two American citizens, Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti, at the hands of federal immigration agents.

In an interview with Minnesota Public Radio‘s Clay Masters on Monday, Gov. Walz described a “more collaborative tone” from Trump, and said the president agreed to consider reducing the number of federal immigration agents in the Twin Cities. He further confirmed that Gregory Bovino, the bombastic and controversial Border Patrol chief leading the surge, will soon leave the state.

Bovino’s exit may help to turn down the temperature of protests in Minneapolis, which have been peaceful but fraught in the days since Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, was shot by CBP officers. Bovino repeatedly defended the actions of his officers, saying without evidence that Pretti intended to “massacre” federal agents, and that he “assaulted” them.

The video evidence and eyewitness accounts that have surfaced so far contradict that assertion. The Trump administration has not provided evidence to support Bovino’s claims.

State officials say they were blocked from accessing the scene of Pretti’s killing on Saturday, and have sued over access to DHS-controlled evidence, which includes body camera footage from the officers involved.

The state is also trying to end the surge through legal avenues. On Monday, state officials sought an immediate restraining order to end what the Trump administration has dubbed “Operation Metro Surge” and return the number of federal immigration enforcement officers in Minneapolis to pre-surge levels.

“They tell us, and this is their words, this is the single largest deployment of immigration officers in one place at one time,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison told reporters outside federal court in Minneapolis on Monday. “What justifies this disproportionate flood? Nothing legitimate.”

The state’s legal team pointed to a social media post from President Trump in which he promised a day of “RECKONING & RETRIBUTION” for Minnesota, and to a letter sent to the state over the weekend by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, which they characterized as a “ransom note” offering to end the DHS surge in exchange for voter registration records and the end of the state’s sanctuary policies.

Representatives for the Trump administration told the judge that the letter simply acknowledges the fact that, without sanctuary policies, the federal government would not have to send as many officers into the state.

The U.S. District Court judge overseeing the case, Katherine Menendez, declined to grant a restraining order in the state’s case. She requested additional court filings from Trump administration lawyers by Wednesday.