Influencer right criticizes Trump after apparent softening on Minneapolis crackdown

A vocal group of Trump supporters publicly criticized the president after he appeared to temper his immigration crackdown in Minneapolis following a phone call with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and after Mr. Trump reassigned Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol official leading the operation, the Times reported on Jan.

30, 2026. Several prominent figures on the so-called influencer right reacted with disappointment and anger. Stephen K. Bannon said, “He blinked,” on his podcast War Room. Nick Fuentes called the president “just an old, tired man who doesn’t really care” on his podcast America First with Nick Fuentes.

Matt Walsh described the move as “a major blunder” on his podcast The Matt Walsh Show. The dispute centers on a pledge from Mr. Trump’s 2024 campaign to carry out “the largest” deportation effort in American history starting on Day 1, a promise that has become a deeply unifying issue for this cohort.

“It became an unifying principle ethos,” Dan Trombly, a researcher at George Washington University, said, adding that the promise ties into narratives on the economy, cultural change and crime. Pressure also came from younger conservative activists and groups. Several college Republican groups and the Young Republicans of Texas published open letters urging Mr.

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