Minneapolis has quickly become the center of massive political unrest after Renee Macklin Good was shot and killed by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer more than two weeks ago. Legal battles and protests have sprung up around a surge in federal law enforcement on the streets.
Good's death may have ignited the crisis in the city, but it also exposed a slew of colliding political factors that all came to light at the same time.
In the days before the shooting took place, the city already faced an escalating political conflict between the Trump administration and Democrats in the state led by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
During a visit to Minneapolis on Thursday, Vice President JD Vance tried to lower the temperature and redirect frustrations away from federal officials.
"We're seeing this level of chaos only in Minneapolis," Vance said, arguing that the administration has not encountered as much pushback when deploying agents to other liberal cities and states.
"Maybe the problem is unique to Minneapolis, and we believe that it is," Vance added. "It's a lack of cooperation between state and local law enforcement and federal law enforcement."
Trump has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to quell protests in the city, and the Pentagon has put up to 1,500 troops on standby in case of deployment. Vance told reporters the move wasn't needed at the moment, but added that "the president could change his mind."
Local lawmakers, notably Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, have likened the administration's efforts in the city to an invasion.
The conflict with federal officials comes as Minnesota has repeatedly garnered national attention in recent months over a series of other violent incidents that have shaken the area – from a mass shooting at a Catholic school in August to the political assassination of Minnesota state lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her spouse in their home in June.
Fraud scandal brings federal probe
In the days leading up to the shooting, Minnesota Democrats were consumed by a different political fight.
The Trump administration zeroed in on allegations of fraud within the state, pausing federal funds for Minnesota day care centers, citing an unsubstantiated claim that Minneapolis-based organizations, run by Somali Americans, were pocketing millions in public funds.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later told Fox News that the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security would be investigating the allegations on the ground, saying it was a "top priority" for the administration.
"President Trump is not going to let Governor Walz off the hook," she added.
Minnesota does have a history of previously documented investigations into social services fraud schemes during his time as governor. For example, roughly 78 people have been charged in relation to a $250 million scheme involving a COVID-era nutrition program.
However, in December, the issue garnered additional attention after the administration amplified an unfounded allegation that had largely spread by right-wing social media influencers online.
Walz decried the move, saying in a statement on X that while cracking down on fraud was a serious issue in the state, the decision was part of "Trump's long game," adding he was politicizing the topic.
But the attention exposed a liability for Walz, who announced he would be dropping out of the gubernatorial race, pledging to focus the rest of his term on rooting out fraud in the state.
The decision marked a striking shift for Walz, who had quickly become one of the most well-known faces in the Democratic Party after Kamala Harris picked him as her running mate in 2024.
It's a role that still makes him a threat in Trump's eyes, argues Michael Minta, a political science professor at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.
"He was one of the main, kind of, attack dogs on Trump during the campaign. Trump didn't like that. Trump seems to take things personally," he said, adding that the president's decision to turn up the pressure on Minnesota is "forcing the hand of Governor Walz, in terms of trying to pursue that third term."
"[Trump is] actually using the government, and the various agencies, in order to go after people – or states – that he feels wronged him," he added. "So Minnesota happens to be one of those states."
A larger fight over Minnesota immigration laws
The allegations of fraud arose as Minneapolis was already becoming the focal point for the Trump administration's agenda against both legal and undocumented immigrants in the area.
Just days into the new year, DHS announced it was deploying roughly 2,000 federal agents and officers to Minneapolis, a number that's increased since Good was shot and killed.
Minnesota is home to the largest Somali community in the country.
But the community has also repeatedly faced verbal attacks and threats from Trump. He characterized Somali immigrants as "garbage" during a Cabinet meeting in early Dec., adding, "they contribute nothing. I don't want them in our country."
Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat who immigrated to the U.S. from Somalia as a child, has also been a frequent target of the White House. She told NPR last month that Trump's comments about Somali immigrants were "vile," albeit not surprising.
"He has trafficked in racism, in xenophobia, in bigotry and Islamophobia for as long as he has held office," she said.
Since the federal presence has intensified in the Twin Cities, residents have told NPR reporters it's left them feeling fearful for their safety regardless of their immigration status.
Richard Carlbom is the chair of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. He sees what's happening in his state as Trump trying to "expand how ICE agents treat American citizens."
"He tried to start by making that experiment successful in Minnesota," he said. "And what he's finding out is that Minnesotans aren't just going to allow it to happen. Minnesotans are resisting."
The situation has sparked ongoing legal battles waged by state officials and advocacy groups against the federal government's immigration crackdown and treatment of protesters.
However, the DOJ has also issued subpoenas to top Minnesota Democrats, including Walz and Frey, alleging they conspired to impede federal law enforcement officials. The lawmakers have refuted those claims, arguing that the probe is an act of political intimidation.
DHS has said that officials have arrested more than 10,000 individuals in Minnesota since Trump took office.
Minnesota's midterm future
It's been over half a century since Minnesotans voted red in the presidential election and roughly 20 years since they elected a Republican governor. However, the state doesn't neatly fit the mold of a solid blue state, explained Minta at the University of Minnesota.
"We have divided government," he said, noting that Democrats and Republicans hold the same number of seats in the state House, and Democrats have just a one-seat advantage in the state Senate.
"It makes politics different here. Democrats don't have these strong majorities," he added, referring to states like Illinois and California, states where federal law enforcement has been called in for aggressive immigration operations and places where Democratic governors have complete backing of the state legislature.
Plus, in the wake of the fraud scandal and Walz's decision not to run again, Republicans eye Minnesota as a place to make gains.
"Minnesotans should be concerned about fraud in their state government because it exploded on Democrats' watch," said Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) Communications Director Mason Di Palma in a statement to NPR.
"If state Democrats think their fraud problem disappears with Tim Walz's failed reelection bid, they're dead wrong."
Minnesota Public Radio's Clay Masters contributed to this report
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