Being a working dude, I don’t have the time or the inclination for minute-by-minute coverage, even for something as relevant to me as the ICE incursion of Minneapolis. So I’ll make do with a summary and the usual speculation of an unlikely nature.
CBS News reports Governor Walz (D-MN) and President Trump spoke on the phone this morning:
Walz’s office also said that Mr. Trump agreed to speak with Department of Homeland Security officials “about ensuring the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is able to conduct an independent investigation, as would ordinarily be the case.”
Mr. Trump, on his Truth Social network, posted that Walz “(requested) to work together with respect to Minnesota.” He went on to say that he and Walz “seemed to be on a similar wavelength,” and added “I told Governor Walz that I would have Tom Homan call him, and that what we are looking for are any and all Criminals that they have in their possession. The Governor, very respectfully, understood that.”
Walz’s office says the governor also took time to remind Mr. Trump that “the Minnesota Department of Corrections already honors federal detainers by notifying Immigration and Customs Enforcement when a person committed to its custody isn’t a U.S. citizen. There is not a single documented case of the department’s releasing someone from state prison without offering to ensure a smooth transfer of custody.”
The two seem to share a mutual disdain, so the change in tone on Trump’s part suggests he’s encountered backlash that has him worried. It might be this:
Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen is calling for the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, saying that she believes Noem is attempting to “mislead the American public” about the fatal shooting of a 37 year-old protester in Minneapolis.
The call from Rosen, a moderate from Nevada who was part of the group that helped Republicans end the 43-day government shutdown last year, comes amid a growing fury from congressional Democrats who have also vowed to block funding for the Homeland Security Department. A House resolution to launch impeachment proceedings against Noem has the support of more than 100 Democrats, but few Senate Democrats have so far weighed in. [AP]
Or maybe the beginnings of a scolding from State Governors may be of concern:
Gov. Phil Scott [(R-VT)] on Sunday urged a pause and “reset” of federal immigration operations following the latest killing of a protester in Minneapolis. In the absence of presidential action, Scott said Congress and the courts may need to step up to rein in the executive branch and “restore constitutionality.”
“It’s not acceptable for American citizens to be killed by federal agents for exercising their God-given and constitutional rights to protest their government,” Scott wrote in a public statement. While the governor has never been a supporter of President Donald Trump, he has been reluctant to speak out against the president’s administration. [Seven Days]
And
[Oklahoma Governor] STITT [(R)]: Well, first off, this is a real tragedy. And I think the death of Americans, what we’re seeing on TV, it’s causing deep concerns over federal tactics and accountability. Americans don’t like what they’re seeing right now.
But I want to step back for just a second, because President Trump was elected to fix immigration issues. And there was broad agreement that we had to close the border. So the Biden era of four years of open border policies was disastrous. So, broad agreement, President Trump closed the border, promised to get violent criminals out of our country. And I think everybody agrees with that. But now Americans are asking
themselves, what is the endgame? What is the solution? And we believe in federalism and state rights. And nobody likes feds coming into their state.
And so what’s the goal right now? Is it to deport every single non- U.S. citizen? I don’t think that’s what Americans want. We have to stop politicizing this. We need real solutions on immigration reform. And I believe that I have got a great solution, that we should give the states the authority to do work force permits, right? So…
[CNN HOST DANA] BASH: So are you saying that they should pull out of Minnesota?
STITT: Well, I think that the president has to answer that question. He is a dealmaker.
And he’s getting bad advice right now. The president needs to let the American people — what is the solution? How do we bring this to conclusion? And I think only the president can answer that question, because it’s complicated. We have to enforce federal laws, but we need to know, what is the endgame?
And I don’t think it’s to deport every single non-U.S. citizen. I think we need employers and employees — if you’re not on welfare or government assistance or Medicaid, we need to allow an employer to match up with that work force. Maybe charge that employer $5,000 that can pay down the national debt and to incentivize them to hire Americans.
But if they need that labor, we’re overcomplicating this. Other countries have figured this out. Don’t give them U.S. citizenship. But if you’re going to have an employer-employee relationship, we should be fixing that, instead of politicizing this.
And, right now, just there’s — tempers are just going crazy, and we need to calm this down. [CNN/Transcripts]
Stephen Miller drives the immigration policy and is reported to be fixated on specific daily arrest counts. I wonder if the appointment of Homan to lead ICE in Minnesota signals a diminishment of Miller’s influence.
CNN reports (subscriber-only, but gives you a bit of access) Greg Bovino is definitely replaced by Tom Homan:
Key player sidelined: Top Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino and some of his agents are expected to leave Minneapolis tomorrow, sources say. The Department of Homeland Security has also suspended his access to his social media accounts, a source told CNN.
I’m struck by suspension of access to social media for Bovino. He seems to be an attack dog that’s a little out of control, and I think Trump has decided he’s a liability, not an asset. The quiet message here is that Trump’s been forced to change, reacting to the situation, rather than dictating it.
Finally, CNN has a subscriber article entitled “Fox News said Tom Homan should be sent to Minnesota — 20 minutes later, Trump did exactly that.” That’s fairly self-explanatory, and continues the narrative that President Trump is not a deep thinker. Although hardly dispositive to the hypothesis that television news such as Fox, One America News, and NewsMax has undue influence, it’s suggestive.
When will Vice President Vance get the memo and sideline Trump? Or is that out of his reach?
That’s enough, time to go to bed.
