Trump administration says Minnesota ICE surge is lawful, denies coercion
Lawyers for the Trump administration told a federal judge on Wednesday that the surge of federal agents in Minnesota was a legitimate exercise of law enforcement power, not an illegal attempt to coerce policy changes, the filing said. The deployment, which the government has called Operation Metro Surge and has involved about 3,000 federal agents, has led to thousands of arrests, three shootings and weeks of protests.
State and city officials have asked the court to block the deployment, arguing it violates state sovereignty under the 10th Amendment. In its filing, the administration wrote, “The point — and the only point relevant for purposes of the 10th Amendment — is that federal law enforcement officers are in Minnesota enforcing validly enacted federal law.” Lawyers for Minneapolis, St.
Paul and Minnesota have accused the administration of political retribution and coercion. Brian Carter, a lawyer for the state, told the court that “it is personal animosity, it is retribution” and accused the federal government of trying to strong-arm the state into changing policies that limit cooperation on civil immigration enforcement.
After a Monday hearing, Judge Kate M. Menendez asked the administration to more fully respond to the coercion claims before ruling on the request to block the deployment. The judge questioned a social media post by President Trump that said, “THE DAY OF RECKONING & RETRIBUTION IS COMING!” and a letter from Attorney General Pam Bondi to Gov.
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