President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act, a law that allows the use of military forces on US soil, in response to escalating unrest in Minnesota over the federal deployment of immigration officers. The warning came as protests intensified in Minneapolis following recent shootings involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
Trump said on social media that if "corrupt politicians of Minnesota" do not control what he described as "professional agitators and insurrectionists" targeting ICE agents, he would take action under the Insurrection Act to restore order.
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Tensions have surged in the state since a US immigration officer shot a Venezuelan man during a traffic stop, an incident that followed the fatal shooting of Minnesota resident Renée Nicole Good by an ICE agent last week. Those incidents have sparked widespread protests and national debate over federal immigration enforcement tactics.
Local leaders, including Minneapolis' mayor and Minnesota officials, have condemned the heavy federal presence, with the state and cities filing lawsuits against the administration's immigration surge, calling it unconstitutional and disruptive to community life.
The Insurrection Act has rarely been used in modern times and its invocation would mark a significant escalation in the federal government's response to civil unrest, highlighting deep political and legal strains between the Trump administration and state authorities over immigration enforcement.