What we know so far
• Insurrection Act: President Donald Trump warned he might invoke the centuries-old law to deploy US troops to Minnesota as state and federal officials clash over tactics used by immigration agents.
• Another Minneapolis shooting: Law enforcement and demonstrators clashed last night near where a federal agent shot and injured a man after he allegedly assaulted the agent. During the struggle, DHS said two people came out of a nearby apartment and attacked the officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle. After the suspect got loose and joined the attack, the officer fired “defensive shots,” DHS said, striking the man in the leg.
• High tensions: Minneapolis leaders are asking residents to remain calm following last night’s shooting, which happened a week after Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent. The shooting sparked nationwide protests and prompted the Trump administration to send in hundreds more agents as part of its coast-to-coast immigration enforcement crackdown.
• Court fights: A judge declined to issue a temporary restraining order after Minnesota and the Twin Cities sued federal officials, claiming the immigration enforcement operation involves warrantless arrests and excessive force. The decision “should not be considered a prejudgment,” the judge said.
Senate Republican leader casts doubts on use of Insurrection Act
Senate Majority Leader John Thune downplayed President Donald Trump’s threat to invoke the Insurrection Act in Minnesota over ICE protests and said he hoped federal, state and local officials will restore calm soon.
He was asked about plans to fund DHS in a yet-to-be passed appropriations bill as some Democrats are demanding language be added to the bill to rein in ICE – something most Republicans oppose.
“That will be the hardest one for sure,” he said of the DHS bill, adding that they might need to pass a continuing resolution for DHS that would keep its current spending levels. “I would say if there were a candidate for a CR, that’s probably the most likely.”
Congress has a deadline at the end of month to pass the remaining spending bills to avert another government shutdown.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, meanwhile, appeared to support Trump’s threat to send US troops to Minnesota and said the threat would not put the Department of Defense funding bill in jeopardy.
“I can tell you that Minnesota is out of control. You have local and state leaders who seem to be encouraging violence,” Johnson told CNN, adding, “The president’s frustrated about it, and so are we.”
ICE may ask people to "validate" their identity, Noem says when asked about Americans carrying proof of citizenship
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told reporters today that people “surrounding” someone alleged to have committed a crime may be asked to “validate their identity.”
One reporter asked Noem why Americans are “being asked on the street to provide proof of citizenship in Minnesota,” whether it’s “targeted enforcement” and if she’s “advising Americans to carry proof of citizenship.”
In response, Noem said, “We’re doing targeted enforcement.”
Thousands of federal agents are in the Minneapolis area carrying out the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, which has led to days of tense protests.
CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig told anchors Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown on “The Situation Room” that it is “unconstitutional” to ask people to show proof of citizenship “without some other basis to make a stop.”
“In order to stop somebody, detain them, question them for immigration purposes, an officer has to have reasonable suspicion,” Honig said. “Now, that’s a fairly low bar. It’s lower than the bar that a law enforcement agent would need to make a stop or questioning for criminal purposes, but it’s still a bar.”
The liberal-leaning Brennan Center for Justice at New York University’s law school said its research shows that more than 21 million American citizens — over 9% of citizens — “don’t have proof of citizenship readily available.”
ACLU of Minnesota Legal Director pushes back against Trump’s insurrection threat
President Donald Trump’s threat to invoke the Insurrection Act to quell anti-ICE protests in Minnesota is dangerous and extreme, said Teresa Nelson, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota.
“Those threats to essentially deploy the military against the people of Minnesota, against protesters and immigrants, is authoritarian. It’s unnecessary, dangerous and wrong,” she told Ana Cabrera on MS Now this morning.
Trump’s threat came after a federal agent shot a man in the leg on Wednesday in Minneapolis, with officials saying the agent was attacked and fired in self-defense. Trump had previously threatened to use the Insurrection Act, a law last modified in 1871 that allows military deployment to states under limited conditions, in Portland, Oregon, in October.
The ACLU’s Minnesota chapter sued the Trump administration in December, claiming agents were violating the constitutional rights of protesters through violent and indiscriminate actions.
“However, the law enforcement, when there are protests, they have a responsibility to facilitate that lawful protest, and what we’re seeing time and time again is a quick escalation of violence against indiscriminate violence against everybody,” Nelson said.
Noem says she's discussed Insurrection Act with Trump as "one of the options" and it's "up to him"
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday that she has discussed the Insurrection Act with President Donald Trump, after he threatened invoking it in Minnesota, but she said the decision on whether to move forward with it rests with him.
While Noem did not describe the situation in Minneapolis as an “insurrection,” she said, “I describe it as violent and violation of law in many places.”
Noem told CNN’s Alayna Treene that she didn’t specifically recommend the Insurrection Act to Trump, but it was discussed as “one of the options he had constitutionally.”
Pressed on whether she believes its necessary in Minnesota, Noem deferred to Trump.
“Oh, I think that that president has that opportunity in the future. It’s his constitutional right, and it’s up to him if he wants to utilize it,” Noem said.
Noem put the onus on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for improving the situation on the ground by working with federal authorities.
“If things don’t get better with Governor Walz, I don’t anticipate that the streets will get any safer. Governor Walz and his leadership team need to come to us and find out how we can work together like we have in many other states,” Noem said.
As for the administration’s ICE operations, Noem said that there are “no plans to pull out of Minnesota.”
Minneapolis City Council member calls on Walz to “demonstrate an ounce of courage” to protect residents
Local leaders have not done enough to protect residents during the federal law enforcement surge in Minneapolis, City Council member Robin Wonsley told CNN’s Sara Sidner on Thursday. Wonsley called on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to “demonstrate an ounce of courage” and declare an eviction moratorium.
“Elected officials, like myself, need to be doing everything we can to get ICE out of Minneapolis, ICE out of Minnesota,” Wonsley said. “Strongly worded statements or strongly worded letters to the administration is just simply not sufficient.”
The governor needs to “demonstrate an ounce of courage in this moment and make sure people can shelter in place as a protective measure” while ICE is in the community, she said.
“Residents are demonstrating a huge amount of courage right now, and it’s not being matched by our elected officials,” the city council member said, adding that residents should not stop protesting. “If elected leaders are not going to show up in this moment to protect and care for our neighbors — we will.”
Heated clashes erupted in Minneapolis overnight. Here's everything you need to know now
The incident that led to intense clashes between federal officials and protesters began around 6:50 p.m. local last night when a federal law enforcement officer in Minneapolis tried to conduct a “targeted traffic stop” of a Venezuelan national who fled the scene in his car, the Department of Homeland Security said.
The man crashed into a parked car and then took off running. When the officer caught up with him, he resisted arrest and began to “violently assault the officer,” the agency said.
During the struggle, two people in a nearby apartment came out and attacked the officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle, DHS said.
The suspect wrangled loose and joined the other two in attacking the officer, according to DHS who said the officer fired “a defensive shot.” The Venezuelan man was shot in the leg.
The three individuals who attacked the officer barricaded themselves in an apartment before being taken into custody, the agency said. The officer and the injured man were taken to the hospital.
Demonstrators began gathering near the scene in the hours after the incident to face off with law enforcement officers who deployed multiple tear gas canisters and what sounded like flash bangs before officials told people to “go home.”
Video from a CNN crew at the scene showed two vehicles that appeared ransacked and vandalized, with the words “F*ck ICE” plastered on one, while another had “America land of the obey or die” written on it. The trunks of both vehicles were open with debris scattered on the ground.
A crowd could be seen following federal agents through the neighborhood, with a line of officers forming a wall behind yellow police tape to block off the road.
US Customs and Border Protection Commander Gregory Bovino was among those spotted at the scene.
City and state leaders called for calm. “For those who have peacefully protested, I applaud you. For those who are taking the bait, you are not helping, and you are not helping the undocumented immigrants of our city. You are not helping the people who call this place home,” Mayor Jacob Frey said during a news conference late Wednesday night.
Trump threatens to invoke the Insurrection Act
President Donald Trump warned he might invoke a centuries-old law to deploy US troops to Minnesota as state and federal officials clash over tactics used by immigration agents.
“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump posted Thursday on Truth Social. “Thank you for you [sic] attention to this matter!”
The Insurrection Act – first passed in 1792 and tweaked in 1871 – allows the deployment of troops within the US in certain situations. The law works in tandem with the Posse Comitatus Act, passed in 1878, which generally prohibits the use of the military inside the US.
Trump previously threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act and send US troops in response to anti-ICE protests in Portland last fall. The last time a president invoked the law was in 1992, when California’s governor asked President George H.W. Bush for help handling riots in Los Angeles.
READ MORE: What is the Insurrection Act?
If a federal agent was ambushed, opening fire "would be appropriate," CNN analyst says
Anytime a federal officer or agent fears for their life or the lives of others, they can escalate to the use of deadly force, and discharging their weapon “would be appropriate,” CNN law enforcement analyst Jonathan Wackrow told CNN’s John Berman while discussing last night’s shooting in Minneapolis.
With more federal law enforcement surging into Minneapolis, Wackrow says, more incidents like these are also likely to happen. “More officer activity means more enforcement contacts,” he explained. “What we’re seeing is intensification, not de-escalation — across the board.”
When clashes between the public and federal law enforcement escalate to the level they did in Minneapolis last night, he said, it “transcends away from this peaceful protest narrative or nonviolent direct action into things that law enforcement has to react to maintain civil order.”
Law enforcement works best when federal, state, and local entities operate in parallel, Wackrow said. The Minneapolis Police Department embedding with ICE agents would not be an endorsement, but would help ensure greater public safety for everyone, he said.
Gregory Bovino spotted at scene where federal agent shot man who allegedly assaulted him
US Customs and Border Protection Commander Gregory Bovino was spotted among other federal agents in Minneapolis, at the scene where a federal agent shot a man who allegedly assaulted him.
Video captured by CNN shows a heavy presence of federal agents and local law enforcement at the scene.
Bovino arrived after the shooting and can be seen walking among other officers without a face mask, wearing a green coat and black shoes. He walked with the group into a taped-off area.
Here's what the scene looked like in Minneapolis as clashes erupted
Clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement erupted Wednesday night after the shooting of a man who allegedly assaulted a federal officer.
Flash bangs and gas canisters were deployed as tensions rose. Demonstrators yelled at law enforcement on the scene.
Here’s a glimpse at what it looked like in Minneapolis last night:
A CNN crew on the scene captured the moment federal agents deployed gas canisters to disperse demonstrators.
CNN on scene in Minneapolis as vehicles are vandalized and ransacked
As clashes continued in Minneapolis on Wednesday night and into the overnight hours, some vehicles were ransacked and vandalized.
CNN’s Whitney Wild was on the scene as the incident unfolded.
Spray paint covers the sides of two vehicles, with phrases reading “F**k ICE” and “America land of the obey or die.”
It is not immediately clear who owns the vehicles. CNN has reached out to both the FBI and DHS for more information.
“It’s not pleasant. It hangs in your mouth, it’s hard to talk, it’s hard to breathe,” Wild said, describing the tear gas deployed in the area. “It can make you kinda nauseous.”
Judge declines to issue TRO in Minnesota lawsuit but says it is not a "prejudgment"
A judge decided not to issue a temporary restraining order after Minnesota and the Twin Cities sued federal officials, claiming their immigration enforcement operation involves warrantless arrests and excessive force.
The lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and its reporting agencies says federal agents are violating the 10th Amendment. Minneapolis, St. Paul and the state asked for a TRO to stop the federal operation while the case proceeds.
The decision Wednesday not to issue a TRO “should not be considered a prejudgment,” US District Judge Katherine Menendez said at a status conference Wednesday morning.
