Like millions of others in the US and around the world, I’ve been horrified by the actions of federal agents from ICE and CBP in Minnesota, Maine, and many other locations.
It looks like the massive outcry and protests after the murder of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis and the obvious lies from administration officials about it may finally have moved the Trump administration to rein in some of the terror they are inflicting.
Greg Bovino, who has been termed “commander-at-large” of Customs and Border Protection, has been on the ground directing operations in Minneapolis; he will now be leaving the state. Trump is sending Tom Homan, his border czar, to Minnesota to head up ICE/CBP operations there. It’s not that I trust Homan, who, among other things, was instrumental in the unconscionable family separation policy in Trump’s first term, but, at least, he was saying that investigations into the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti needed to happen before conclusions were drawn, as opposed to Bovino, DHS Secretary Noem, Vice-president Vance, and other administration officials who immediately labelled the victims as “domestic terrorists” who deserved to die.
Trump has also reportedly had productive conversations with MN governor Walz and Minneapolis mayor Frey, which is a good sign, although surprising after Trump vilified them repeatedly over the last several weeks.
It seems that Trump and his administration may finally be realizing that the majority of the country opposes the unlawful arrests and violence that ICE and CBP have undertaken. The vast majority of court cases have been decided in favor of plaintiffs, not the government, although, shamefully, the government lawyers have lied to judges and defied their orders on many occasions. While many Democratic officeholders have opposed Trump’s actions, finally some Republicans are speaking out, as well. Chris Madel has dropped out of the Republican primary to be governor of Minnesota because of the ICE/CBP assault on his state by the Republican administration.
I believe, though, that the greatest credit for this pullback goes to the people of Minnesota, who refused to be cowed even by violence against them. They organized to watch out for their neighbors and bring them food and supplies when it was too dangerous to go out because ICE/CBP were taking people off the street if they were people of color or speaking a different language, even if they were citizens or had legal status. They protected schools and students. They blew whistles to warn if agents were in the area and filmed agents’ activities to document what they were doing. They held a general strike to protest what was happening. They held many rallies, marches, and vigils, even though Minnesota winters are very, very cold. Their persistence, strength, and goodness are a great service to the nation and a great example to other locations under threat.
No one knows if this will be a turning point and Trump administration will stop their lawless campaign against immigrants or not, but it seems that Trump at least realizes that his actions are condemned by the majority of the country.
There has been a lot of discussion, however, that large-scale deportation is only part of the plan – that the real endgame is to militarize our cities and interfere with or suspend the November elections.
This possibility was made explicit when Attorney General Pam Bondi sent a letter to Gov. Walz, demanding concessions, which included handing over complete voter data to the federal government. In the United States, state and local governments are responsible for running elections, not the federal government. It is feared that the Trump administration would use such voter data to try to suppress the votes of people who are unlikely to vote for Republicans. Trump has also threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy troops in Democratic-led cities and states, which is not allowed in general under the Posse Commitatus Act. Having the military patrolling would suppress votes as eligible voters, especially people of color, would be afraid to go to their polling places.
I hope that this will be a pivot point and that Congress and the courts will be able to stop the abuses of the Trump administration. Perhaps there will be impeachments or resignations of some of the administration leaders responsible for these abuses.
The ordinary folks of Minnesota have been resolute in defending our rights and the common good. May their resolve, action, and compassion inspire members of Congress to do the right thing and uphold their oaths of office.
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Joanne Corey 