By Emmanuel Bobby
Minnesota officials filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to block the federal government from deploying thousands of immigration agents to the state, arguing the move is unconstitutional and politically motivated.
At a news conference, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said the state is being unfairly targeted because of its diversity, democratic values, and policy disagreements with the federal government.
“We allege that the obvious targeting of Minnesota for our diversity, for our democracy and for our differences of opinion with the federal government is a violation of the Constitution and of federal law,” Ellison said, calling the deployment a federal “invasion of the Twin Cities.”
“This has to stop,” he added.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota, lists the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul as plaintiffs and names officials from the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection as defendants.
Federal officials pushed back sharply. DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin accused Ellison of “prioritizing politics over public safety,” arguing that so-called “sanctuary politicians” forced the department to surge agents into the state.
“President Trump’s job is to protect the American people and enforce the law — no matter who your mayor, governor, or state attorney general is,” McLaughlin said.
A White House spokeswoman echoed that criticism, calling the lawsuit “a pathetic stunt” and accusing Democrats of putting “illegal criminals over hardworking Americans.”
Local leaders say the federal presence is overwhelming their communities. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey noted that the city has about 600 police officers and said deploying thousands of federal immigration agents was “wildly disproportionate.”
“At times, there are as many as 50 agents arresting one person,” Frey said. “We’re feeling the impact here in Minneapolis. Schools have closed. People are afraid to go to work, shop, or seek medical care. 911 calls are up, and police resources are stretched thin.”
St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, whose family fled Laos when she was a child, said the situation has created fear even among elected officials.
“I’m carrying my passport and my ID with me at all times,” she said. “I don’t know when I’m going to be detained.”
The lawsuit was filed a day after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that hundreds more federal officers would be sent to Minnesota amid protests following the killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE officer.
Noem said the federal operation is now focused not only on alleged immigration violations but also on ICE-related protests. She described Good, a 37-year-old prize-winning poet, as a terrorist who “weaponized” her vehicle against the officer, claiming the shooting was in self-defense. State and local officials dispute that account, saying Good was attempting to leave the scene and calling the federal characterization “propaganda.”
Good was fatally shot while sitting in the driver’s seat of an SUV in a residential area of Minneapolis. Eyewitness video shows officers ordering her to exit the vehicle before she begins to drive away, followed by multiple gunshots and the SUV crashing into a parked car.
Minnesota officials have also criticized federal authorities for excluding the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension from the investigation into Good’s death. Noem has accused state investigators of allowing harassment and incitement against federal officers.
The Trump administration began ramping up immigration enforcement in Minnesota in December after conservative commentators highlighted a years-old fraud case involving members of the Somali community. More recently, more than 2,000 ICE and Homeland Security Investigations officers were deployed after a right-wing influencer accused several Somali-run day care centers of fraud. State officials later said they found no evidence supporting those claims.
Minnesota is not alone in challenging the federal crackdown. Illinois filed a similar lawsuit Monday, alleging that immigration agents in the state are using “unlawful and dangerous tactics.”
“We have watched in horror as unchecked federal agents have aggressively assaulted and terrorized our communities and neighborhoods in Illinois, undermining constitutional rights and threatening public safety,” Gov. JB Pritzker said.
The White House dismissed Illinois’ lawsuit as well, saying it “reads like a far-left manifesto” and accusing Democratic leaders of trying to “smear law enforcement officers and incite violence against them.”
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