Federal immigration enforcement officers opened fire during a protest in Minneapolis, killing Renee Good, Associated Press reported. The incident unfolded as the administration continued its immigration enforcement campaign that has included federal officers encountering opposition in cities it has targeted, the wire service said.
The announcement and deployment set the stage for heightened tension in Minnesota, which AP described as already marked by conflict with the Trump administration during the first term. AP said Trump has focused on Democratic “blue” states as part of what it called a divide-and-conquer approach, and that Minnesota has been among the most intensely strained.
In the Twin Cities, the AP reported, the administration sent more than 2,000 federal officers to Minneapolis and St. Paul and described the operation as the biggest immigration enforcement operation in history. AP said the ICE officer who killed Good opened fire just blocks from where a Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd in 2020, prompting fears of renewed unrest.
Stephanie Abel, a 56-year-old Minneapolis nurse, said she worried federal actions would inflame the city. “I thought the federal government would realize that now is not the time to be toying with people,” Abel said. She added, “What are they going to try to do to get Minneapolis to ignite?”
AP reported that Floyd’s death sparked the biggest protests of Trump’s first term, and that Trump has remained publicly bitter about the unrest. The wire service said Trump’s second-term approach has relied on surging military and immigration agents into cities and warning of severe consequences for those who do not comply with federal demands.
In remarks Thursday, Vice President JD Vance said Good’s death was “a tragedy of her own making,” according to AP. AP said Vance blamed “leftist ideology” and argued that the media encouraged protests against Trump’s immigration crackdown. AP also reported Vance spoke at the White House when he announced a new assistant attorney general position to prosecute abuse of government assistance programs, with a focus on Minnesota.
AP tied the Minneapolis-St. Paul operation to a broader political effort to make Minnesota a focal point for government fraud allegations, including scrutiny involving Somali community organizations. The wire service reported that Trump called Minnesota’s Somali population “garbage” last month in the context of a massive federal investigation into COVID-19 and medical aid fraud, and that the investigations led Gov. Tim Walz to announce this week he will not run for reelection.
The AP described how some claims have spread without evidence. It said there has been little, if any, evidence proving a link between federal money and al-Shabab, after Trump called Minnesota “a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity” following a City Journal report. AP also reported that conservative influencer Nick Shirley posted an unconfirmed video alleging Minneapolis day care centers run by Somalis collected over $100 million in government aid.
AP reported that Jamal Osman, a Somali immigrant and Minneapolis city councilman living near the shooting site, said prominent Somalis in the area have received angry calls and messages since Trump made his statements, with vitriol largely coming from out of state. Osman said, “We have whole groups of people who’ve never been to Minnesota,” and added that “Minnesota is probably one of the nicest places to live,” saying the community “blended in” and that “we don’t really see bad things happening here normally.”
Meanwhile, AP said the administration on Tuesday withheld funding for programs supporting needy families with children, including day care funding, in Minnesota and four other Democratic-led states over concerns about fraud: California, Colorado, Illinois and New York. AP reported that Minneapolis schools remained closed after immigration agents clashed with high school students at one campus on Wednesday, and that the Minnesota National Guard remained on standby at Walz’s directive.
Walz urged Trump to ease pressure on the state. “So please, just give us a break,” Walz said during a news conference Thursday. He added, “And if it’s me, you’re already getting what you want, but leave my people alone. Leave our state alone.”
Correction: This story has been corrected to show George Floyd was not fatally shot.