The Trump administration is reducing the number of immigration enforcement officers in Minnesota after state and local officials agreed to cooperate by turning over arrested immigrants, border czar Tom Homan said Wednesday.
But Homan did not give a timeline when the operation might end in Minnesota after weeks of turmoil in the Twin Cities and escalated protests, especially since the killing of protester Alex Pretti, the second fatal shooting by federal officers in Minneapolis.
A widespread withdrawal will only occur after people stop interfering with federal agents carrying out arrests and setting up roadblocks to impede the operations, Homan said.
The border czar has pushed for jails to alert Immigration and Customs Enforcement to inmates who could be deported, saying transferring such inmates to ICE is safer because it means fewer officers have to be out looking for people in the country illegally.
Other news we’re following:
- DHS funding runs out in two weeks: Trump signed a roughly $1.2 trillion government funding bill Tuesday to end the partial government shutdown. But the package only funds the Department of Homeland Security through Feb. 13 at the behest of Democrats who demand more restrictions on immigration enforcement after federal officers killed Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis.
- US wants to create a critical minerals trading bloc: The bloc would use tariffs to maintain price floors and defend against China’s tactic of flooding the market to undermine any potential competitors. Critical minerals are needed for everything from jet engines to smartphones. China dominates the market for those ingredients crucial to high-tech products.
- Georgia county asks judge to force the FBI to return seized documents: Fulton County has filed a motion in federal court seeking the return of all documents from the 2020 election that were seized last week from a warehouse near Atlanta by the FBI, officials in the Georgia county said Wednesday.
