Signs of retreat are bursting out all over for Donald Trump’s so-called Operation Metro Surge in the Twin Cities.
Gov. Tim Walz released a readout of his phone call with Trump suggesting that withdrawing agents and allowing state investigations into Renee Good and Alex Pretti’s killings are on the table.
According to multiple news outlets, Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino and some of his agents are expected to leave Minnesota on Tuesday, and so-called Border Czar Tom Homan is heading to the state instead, as popular outrage spreads even to Trump’s hard-right base.
During a half-hour video conversation, Allison Gill and I rattled off the signs that Trump understands the tide has turned against him.
“We have a Republican gubernatorial candidate withdrawing from the race because of what’s going on with ICE,” Gill noted. “We have House Dems regretting their vote in the House to fund the DHS spending bill. We’ve got [far-right influencer] Tim Pool saying that this is an execution. We’ve got [Maria] Bartiromo on Fox News taking Bovino to task. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
It was a rough day in court for Trump’s Justice Department in swatting away a lawsuit to end the ICE surge in the Twin Cities, after Attorney General Pam Bondi sent Walz a letter suggesting that withdrawing federal agents required a change in state priorities.
U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez, a Joe Biden appointee, demanded further briefing from the Justice Department to address arguments that “the purpose of Operation Metro Surge is to punish” the state and cities for adopting sanctuary laws and policies.
The federal government must also explain whether they’re trying to “coerce” Minnesota and the Twin Cities into changing state and local law, “compel” them to share voter data, and push them to devote more resources towards federal priorities. The Justice Department must submit their brief by Wednesday at 6 p.m. Central Time, showing that a ruling from Judge Menendez will not be imminent.
In the video at the top of this newsletter, Allison and I also preview Wednesday’s evidentiary hearing in the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
