As federal immigration authorities’ Operation Metro Surge hits the two-month mark, reaction from Minnesota Republicans have varied, while mostly adhering to party lines.
But a few, like former Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Chris Madel and State Sen. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, have denounced the operation and called on the federal government to withdraw 3,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Border Patrol agents from Minnesota. The operation is the largest of its kind in U.S. history.
“I never thought we needed a surge,” Abeler told Sahan Journal. “I thought they were doing fine with the regular work they were doing — looking for criminals, murderers and all that — and the surge took it far beyond that.”
Some Minnesota Republicans have called for a stop to Operation Metro Surge with gentler criticism. Democratic party leaders have been vocal in calling for an end to the operation.
“After tragic shootings and rising tensions, I’m calling on all sides to de-escalate,” State Sen. Julia Coleman, R-Waconia, wrote in a Jan. 25 Facebook post “Pause targeted operations, honor ICE detainers for criminals, negotiate, and prioritize peace.”
And then there are those who stand completely behind the operation and put all the blame on Minnesota Democrats.
“Let’s support ICE, let’s get violent criminals out of Minnesota and lets make Minnesota great again,” State Sen. Glenn Gruenhagen, R-Glencoe, said in a Jan. 21 video post.
On Monday, Jan. 26, Sahan Journal contacted all 112 Republican legislators, congresspeople and gubernatorial candidates to ask for their opinions on the ongoing immigration crackdown, and whether they back federal agents’ conduct. We also looked through their social media posts.
Federal authorities have said agents are arresting hardened criminals, but agents have been accused of arresting U.S. citizens and children, using a child as bait to capture his family, using excessive force on protesters and forcing their way into homes without proper warrants.
They’ve also been accused of racially profiling citizens and off-duty police officers, and of dragging a U.S. citizen out of his St. Paul home in his underwear into freezing temperatures while looking for someone else.
We also asked Republican lawmakers if they think the federal government should investigate the Jan. 7 killing of Renee Nicole Macklin Good, and the Jan. 24 killing of Alex Pretti, both of whom were fatally shot by federal agents while observing enforcement activity in Minneapolis, and whether state authorities should be included. (State authorities have said the federal government blocked them from both investigations.)
Minnesota Congresswoman Michelle Fischbach, defended ICE following Good’s killing, calling the events leading up to it a “targeted assault” on ICE. Reacting to Pretti’s killing, Congressman Tom Emmer wrote on Facebook that he was “grateful no Border Patrol agents were harmed.”
“Unlike my Democrat colleagues, I’m going to let law enforcement conduct their investigation and not jump to asinine conclusions,” he wrote of Pretti’s killing.
Lawmakers were asked if they approve of the federal government’s narrative that Pretti brandished his gun at agents and acted as a “domestic terrorist.” Bystander video shows Pretti helping a woman who’s pushed by a federal agent; he never draws his gun, which he was legally carrying. The video shows a federal agent removing the gun from Pretti’s waistband before two other federal agents fire several shots at him while he’s on the ground.
As of Feb. 11, Sahan Journal has received responses from four lawmakers — state Sen. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka; state Rep. Elliott Engen, R-Lino Lakes; state Rep. Dave Baker, R-Willmar; and state Rep. Nolan West, R-Blaine.
Baker told Sahan Journal that he supports a pause in federal immigration enforcement.
“What I have witnessed in my own community here in Willmar is challenging,” he said. “I think we should immediately reassess the use of these resources and what we’re doing with them.”
Engen, who is also a candidate for state auditor, pointed blame at both Trump and Walz.
“When state leaders make it their mission to fight federal government actions under any circumstance, and when federal officials respond in kind, everyday people are in a worse situation,” he wrote in a statement to Sahan Journal. “This horrific tragedy and chaos was avoidable, and that’s what breaks my heart.”
West said he supported targeted immigration enforcement, and took issue with some of the tactics ICE and Border Patrol agents have been using.
“I do not support detaining illegal immigrants just because they happen to cross paths with an ICE agent,” he said. “Enforcement should be deliberate and precise.”
Many lawmakers have been more vocal about the situation on social media, often supporting President Donald Trump and border czar Tom Homan, while blaming Gov. Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey.
We’ve collected local Republican lawmakers’ comments and social media activity about Operation Metro Surge below, and will update the story as we receive new responses.
