WASHINGTON – The Justice Department issued a flood of subpoenas to the offices of Democratic officials in Minnesota on Tuesday — including Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison and the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul — as part of an investigation into whether they impeded federal immigration enforcement.
All of those Democratic officials had been critical of the influx of about 3,000 federal agents who have been rounding up undocumented immigrants – and sometimes U.S. citizens – since “Operation Metro Surge” began on Dec. 1.
The state and the Twin Cities have sued the Trump administration to try to stop the massive effort by federal immigration enforcement agents that led to the fatal shooting of Renee Good and widespread protests, especially in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
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Walz called the subpoenas, which were also sent to officials of Ramsey and Hennepin counties, an effort at “intimidation” and at sowing “division and fear.”
“This Justice Department investigation, sparked by calls for accountability in the face of violence, chaos and the killing of Renee Good, does not seek justice,” Walz said in a statement. “It is a partisan distraction … Minnesota will not be intimidated into silence and neither will I.”
Ellison said “everything about this is highly irregular, especially the fact that this comes shortly after my office sued the Trump administration to challenge their illegal actions within Minnesota.”
“Less than two weeks ago, federal agents shot and killed a Minnesotan in broad daylight,” Ellison said in a statement. “Now, instead of seriously investigating the killing of Renee Good, Trump is weaponizing the justice system against any leader who dares stand up to him.”
Deputy U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche, who once served as President Donald Trump’s attorney, said the Justice Department said it is not investigating the fatal shooting of Good by Jonathan Ross, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent.
Ellison also said Trump is “coming after the people of Minnesota” in a campaign of “retaliation and revenge.”
Michelle Goodwin, a constitutional law expert at Georgetown Law School, said the Justice Department said the subpoenas are likely part of a campaign to intimidate Minnesota officials who oppose the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in the state.
She also said the Justice Department may be on a “fishing expedition” to try to find evidence of wrongdoing that could lead to prosecutions.
In any case, Goodwin said the attack on Minnesota’s officials is highly unusual and has not been seen since the civil rights era of the 1960s.
“But then, states were acting in violation of the Constitution, and this is not happening here,” Goodwin said.
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David Schultz, a law professor and Hamline University political science professor, said the Justice Department could be on a legitimate fact-finding mission.
“But on the other hand, this could be harassment,” Schultz said, citing a recent Truth Social post by Trump that threatened Minnesota with a “DAY OF RECKONING & RETRIBUTION.”
Trump also threatened last week to invoke the Insurrection Act to send military troops to Minnesota.
Minnesota officials were defiant on Tuesday in the face of the Justice Department’s threat.
“When the federal government weaponizes its power to try to intimidate local leaders for doing their jobs, every American should be concerned,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said in a statement. “We shouldn’t have to live in a country where people fear that federal law enforcement will be used to play politics or crack down on local voices they disagree with.“
Meanwhile, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her said she was “unfazed by these tactics, and I stand firm in my commitment to protect our residents, neighbors, and community.
Daniel Borgetpoepping, a spokesman for the Hennepin County Attorney’s office, said its Civil Division will be advising Hennepin County on its subpoena. But neither Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty nor her office has received a subpoena, Borgetpoepping said.
Moriarty is spearheading an investigation into Good’s shooting.
Hard to track arrests
Greg Bovino of U.S. Border Patrol, who has commanded the Trump administration’s big-city immigration crackdown, said more than 10,000 people in the U.S. illegally have been arrested in Minnesota in the past year, including 3,000 “of some of the most dangerous offenders” in the last six weeks during Operation Metro Surge.
He did not elaborate, though he highlighted the capture of three people with criminal records from Laos, Guatemala and Honduras.
Julia Decker, policy director at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, expressed frustration that advocates have no way of knowing whether the government’s arrest numbers and descriptions of the people in custody are accurate.
MinnPost reporter Trevor Mitchell and the Associated Press contributed to this story.
The post Justice Department subpoenas offices of Walz, Ellison, Frey and other Democratic officials who criticized immigration crackdown appeared first on MinnPost.
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