President Donald Trump has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy troops in Minneapolis, following deadly clashes between federal immigration agents and protesters. The escalation stems from a fatal shooting of a local woman by an ICE agent last week, sparking widespread unrest in the Twin Cities. Community organizers and Democratic leaders are resisting the surge of federal agents, while the administration defends its operations as necessary for public safety.
On January 7, 2026, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross fatally shot 37-year-old U.S. citizen Renee Macklin Good in Minneapolis during an operation targeting undocumented immigrants. Video footage shows Good parking her SUV in the road to monitor agents, reversing briefly, then driving forward, striking Ross, who fired three shots. First responders found Good with two gunshot wounds to her right chest, one to her left forearm, and possible injury to her left head side; she was unresponsive and pronounced dead at a hospital.
The incident ignited over a week of protests, with demonstrators confronting masked ICE agents, who have used tear gas, flash-bangs, and pepper balls to disperse crowds. Up to 3,000 federal agents are deployed in the Twin Cities, amid claims of abductions and brutality. On January 15, another clash occurred when agents shot a Venezuelan man in the leg after he and two others attacked an officer, leading to further unrest with fireworks thrown at law enforcement and vehicle vandalism.
Trump responded on January 16 by threatening the Insurrection Act, stating it would quell 'professional agitators and insurrectionists' attacking ICE 'Patriots.' DHS asserts agents face siege-like conditions, with 70% of arrests involving criminals, while Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison call it 'governance by reality TV' creating chaos. Walz urged residents to record ICE actions for a state database to document 'atrocities' for prosecutions.
Community networks on Signal track unmarked ICE vehicles, with volunteers honking horns as warnings and providing mutual aid like groceries to vulnerable families. Democratic leaders, including Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, and Reps. Ilhan Omar and Angie Craig, attempted oversight visits to detention centers but were briefly allowed entry before being turned away. Minnesota, along with Illinois, sued the administration over the operations, citing constitutional violations. Polls indicate declining public support for ICE amid the violence.
