What we covered here
• CNN town hall: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he had a “productive” conversation with border czar Tom Homan, but that he didn’t receive any assurances the immigration crackdown in the city would come to an end. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he is concerned that the evidence in Alex Pretti’s case will be compromised by federal agents. Read our takeaways from the event.
• Footage of clash: New video has emerged showing a physical clash between Pretti and federal agents over a week before he was killed. An attorney for Pretti’s family said, “Nothing that happened a full week before could possibly have justified Alex’s killing.”
• Lawmaker attacked: The FBI is leading the probe into an attack on Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar in which she was sprayed with what police believe is apple cider vinegar.
Our live coverage of the immigration crackdown in Minnesota has moved here.
Rep. Ilhan Omar responds to Trump’s claim attack her was "probably staged"
President Donald Trump suggested that the assault on Rep. Ilhan Omar during a town hall in Minneapolis was “probably staged.” Here’s what Omar told CNN in response.
This is how much Trump’s National Guard deployments have cost taxpayers
President Donald Trump’s sweeping deployment of National Guard troops to several major cities across the United States cost taxpayers about $496 million from June through December last year, according to an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office.
The CBO, which aims to provide objective, nonpartisan information to Congress, estimates that if last year’s deployments were to continue through this year, it could cost taxpayers $93 million per month — which would amount to more than $1.1 billion in 2026.
In a letter to Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon on Wednesday, the CBO said it arrived at those figures based on direct and indirect costs “to activate, deploy and compensate National Guard personnel” including “the operational, logistical, and sustainment costs of maintaining those deployments.”
Merkley, ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, asked the CBO in October to analyze the cost of the Trump administration’s troop deployments to several cities.
The CBO estimate covers National Guard and active-duty Marine Corps deployments to Los Angeles; Washington, DC; Memphis; Portland; and Chicago. It does not include the deployment to New Orleans.
CNN reporter breaks down video of clash between Pretti and federal agents days before he was killed
New video has emerged showing a physical clash between Alex Pretti and federal agents over a week before he was fatally shot by Customs and Border Protection agents.
Rep. Castro tells CNN why he is concerned for 5-year-old at detention facility
US Rep. Joaquin Castro said he met with Liam Conejo Ramos, the 5-year-old Minnesota boy taken from his family’s driveway after federal agents apprehended his father. CNN’s Ed Lavandera reports.
US Rep. Joaquin Castro met Wednesday with Liam Conejo Ramos, the 5-year-old Minnesota boy taken from his family’s suburban Minneapolis driveway last week after federal agents apprehended his father, the congressman said after visiting the South Texas facility where the pair is held. CNN's Ed Lavandera reports.
Minnesota GOP lawmaker pressed on whether he saw a riot
CNN’s Sara Sidner and Anderson Cooper ask Republican Minnesota State Rep. Elliott Engen whether he saw a “riot” where Alex Pretti was seen using a cellphone moments before his death last weekend.
CNN's Sara Sidner and Anderson Cooper ask Republican Minnesota State Rep. Elliott Engen whether he saw a "riot" where Alex Pretti was seen using a cellphone moments before his death last weekend.
Hundreds gather outside VA headquarters in nation’s capital for Alex Pretti vigil
Braving frigid temperatures and snow drifts outside the Washington, DC, headquarters of the Department of Veterans Affairs, hundreds of people gathered for a vigil tonight to pay tribute to Alex Pretti, the VA nurse who was shot and killed Saturday by Customs and Border Protection agents in Minneapolis.
The event, organized by more than two dozen labor unions and other groups, featured prayers, speeches and anti-ICE chants.
Daniel Amyx, a colleague of Pretti’s at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, addressed the crowd. No longer able to hold back tears, he said, “Alex Pretti has been relieved. Those of you standing here are the next shift. We need to get that work done!”
Amyx told CNN he made the trip to Washington to call for justice for Pretti and to help “end this struggle we’re in.” Amyx said many of the nurses at that VA hospital wore black scrubs to work on Monday, two days after the shooting, and he described a “walk of honor” set up for Pretti in a hallway of the hospital.
“As a fellow civil servant myself, I think this is a call to action for all of us,” said Peter Grills, one of the event’s organizers and a federal employee, who asked that the agency where he worked not be named.
Many who gathered held lit candles to honor Pretti, and a makeshift memorial was constructed on top of an outdoor planter, featuring lit candles surrounding a portrait of Pretti. People held signs reading “Crush ICE,” “Snow is wonderful but ICE sucks!” and “Freeze all ICE raids now.”
Justice Department bracing for more resignations in Minnesota
The Justice Department is bracing for a new wave of resignations in the Minnesota federal prosecutors’ office over recent immigration enforcement efforts in the state, sources familiar with the matter said.
The resignations were threatened during a recent meeting in which US Attorney Daniel Rosen had tried to convince line prosecutors in his office to understand and get on board with the Trump administration’s efforts in Minnesota, the sources said. His plea so far hasn’t assuaged concerns within the office that the administration is taking potentially unlawful steps.
One of the sources said that if the resignations came to fruition, they could decimate the US Attorney’s office, as it is overwhelmed with cases and an earlier wave of resignations over how the Justice Department was investigating the deadly shooting of Renee Good.
The meeting and potential resignations are being watched closely by Justice Department officials in Washington. The Justice Department declined to comment.
Attorney General Pam Bondi was in Minnesota today, her second trip in as many weeks. At least some of her meetings there were to boost morale at the US Attorney’s office, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Rep. Ilhan Omar says man who allegedly rushed at her during town hall will be taken into federal custody
Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Wednesday she believes the person who rushed at her and sprayed a syringe of unknown liquid at her during a town hall in Minneapolis will be taken into federal custody tomorrow.
“They’re supposed to take him into federal custody tomorrow. So charges should be coming at some point tomorrow is my understanding,” she said on “The Source.”
As CNN reported Wednesday, the FBI has taken the lead in the investigation into 55-year-old Anthony J. Kazmierczak, the man who who allegedly attacked her.
The federal court record database does not indicate any charges against Kazmierczak.
Omar also dismissed President Donald Trump’s claims that she staged the attack and insisted that his administration has lied about various attacks, pointing towards the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
“They have constantly told us not to believe in our eyes. Fortunately, both of those assassinations were caught on camera. And so was what happened to me last night, caught on camera,” she said.
"It feels like a coverup," Minnesota attorney general says about lack of federal cooperation on investigations
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a CNN town hall tonight that the lack of cooperation from the federal government in investigating the shooting and killing of citizens “feels like a coverup.”
Ellison was asked by an audience member how the state will investigate someone for potential criminal activity if it doesn’t know the names of the individuals involved in the fatal shooting Alex Pretti.
If the federal government is confident about the actions of the agents, then it should volunteer the information, Ellison said.
Remember: The information-sharing practice was not followed in the wake of Renee Good’s shooting by an ICE official just a few weeks ago — the FBI quickly cut out local Minnesota investigators, essentially ending their investigation.
AG Ellison says he’s “deeply concerned” about federal authorities’ handling of Alex Pretti case evidence
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he is concerned that the evidence in Alex Pretti’s case will be compromised by federal agents.
Ellison said that while it’s “really not a big deal” for federal, state and local authorities to work together, that has not been the case in this situation.
“Unfortunately, in this situation, we’ve been excluded from the file … in three different cases now. So, we had to take that action,” he said
Crowd laughs after GOP lawmaker suggests Minnesota leaders have brushed off peace overtures from Trump
A Republican Minnesota lawmaker on Wednesday said the Trump administration has offered peace overtures to state leaders in the wake of Alex Pretti’s killing, only to be “swatted away” – a remark that drew laughter from the crowd at the town hall where he was speaking.
State Sen. Michael Holmstrom denounced some of the rhetoric directed toward the Trump administration that has come from leaders including Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who said on Tuesday that he would “beat the sh*t” out of JD Vance in a debate if there were to be a rematch of their 2024 showdown while both were running for vice president.
“That’s language that really makes people feel unsafe,” Holmstrom said during a CNN town hall. “They feel unsteady when their leaders are talking about getting in fistfights with each other … That’s not that’s not how we lead. That’s not how we should legislate, and that’s not how we should treat our people.”
When reminded that the Trump administration often uses heated rhetoric, Holstrom then pointed out that the president, in posts to social media after speaking with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey over the phone, responded positively toward their conversation.
“The olive branch is constantly extended, and it’s swatted away because of anger and resentment,” Holmstrom said. The crowd responded to that comment with laughter.
Since his initial complimentary post about his conversation with Frey, Trump has warned that the mayor is “playing with fire” if he does not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.
Trump officials push back on 10th Amendment claim in Minnesota lawsuit to block federal agents in state
The Trump administration is pushing back on claims in a lawsuit filed by Minnesota officials that the federal immigration enforcement operation in the Twin Cities is violating the 10th Amendment, calling the allegations “unprecedented and legally groundless.”
In a court filing Wednesday, Trump officials argued the purpose of Operation Metro Surge has always been “the enforcement of federal law.” They asked the court not to “massively expand” the 10th Amendment – which establishes the division of powers between the state and federal government – and deny the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction.
Officials in Minnesota filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to curb the Trump administration’s ongoing operation, in part citing the 10th Amendment to back the claim that the surge of federal agents is tantamount to federal overreach and a violation of their state’s sovereignty, CNN has reported.
Trump and his administration have said the Constitution gives the federal government broad authority to enforce national immigration laws as the government sees fit.
The Trump officials wrote, “… Certainly this single and unclear reference to ‘retribution’ does not justify the unprecedented relief of ordering thousands of federal officers to leave Minnesota,” according to the court document.
Read more about the 10th Amendment claims in the lawsuit here.
The CNN town hall has ended
The CNN town hall had ended.
Minnesotans got the opportunity to ask their local officials and elected leaders questions about the situation unfolding in their state and in Minneapolis.
The politics of Minnesota have been scrambled by the immigration crackdown
When the spotlight moves on from Minneapolis, the political debate over what transpired in the month of January will surely reverberate for the rest of the year.
Minnesota is a key battleground in the midterm elections. Its politics have been scrambled since Gov. Tim Walz announced he was not running for reelection. Sen. Amy Klobuchar is expected to soon enter the governor’s race, where nearly a dozen Republican candidates are already running.
An open Senate race to fill the seat of the retiring Democratic Sen. Tina Smith, along with fiercely competitive House races, could help shape control of Congress in the fall.
The nuanced words from the Republican lawmakers on Wednesday night underscored the point that even some supporters of President Donald Trump have pointed questions about the immigration crackdown and rights of gun owners in America. Democrats, do too.
“You’ll never hear me saying people shouldn’t have the right to have a gun,” said Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, a Democrat. “But you’ll also never hear me say you should have unlimited rights to posses a gun. I’m sure people of good will can come together to say what makes sense.”
The debate over immigration, guns and law enforcement will go on. Minnesota could be called the reddest blue state in America, where the politics don’t always fall along predictable lines, but all eyes will be on the state for the year to come.
“Minneapolis is a shining example of a city that is standing up for America,” Frey says
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he is proud of how community members have responded to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s presence in the city.
He touted the city’s resilience.
The city has been a place of “heartbreak” but it “is also a place of grit and perseverance,” the mayor said.
“We’ve been through it all over these last five years, but Minneapolis is a shining example of a city that is standing up for America,” Frey said.
Minnesota attorney general will take the next questions
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is joining this CNN town hall next.
The trio of GOP state lawmakers has nuanced thoughts
It’s been interesting to watch these three Republican state lawmakers – and how they don’t fully toe Trump’s line.
State Sen. Michael Holmstrom Jr. was asked about Trump saying that Pretti shouldn’t have been carrying a gun.
“I certainly disagree with the president on that,” Holmstrom said, emphasizing his support for the Second Amendment.
State Rep. Nolan West emphasized that he didn’t favor deporting all undocumented migrants, calling it “fundamentally impossible” and “economic suicide.”
And state Rep. Elliott Engen – who’s been perhaps the most outspoken on the panel and the most critical of Democrats’ posture – agreed after some probing that ICE agents have also engaged in unhelpful, “negative rhetoric” towards protesters.
MN Republican disagrees with Trump’s gun comments, but says those carrying firearms need to be “judicious”
A Republican Minnesota lawmaker on Wednesday said he disagreed with President Donald Trump’s comments that Alex Pretti should not have been carrying a gun the day he was killed, but added that he believes gun owners should think carefully about the type of environments they carry in.
“I guess I disagree with the president on that,” state Sen. Michael Holmstrom said when asked at a CNN town hall about Trump’s remarks.
But the lawmaker added that gun owners have a responsibility “to be judicious about when and where you carry your firearm.”
“I’ve been to protests,” said Holmstrom, who said he has a gun permit. “I don’t carry there because it’s a dangerous situation.
“I’m not saying you can’t. I’m saying that you have a responsibility to be judicious in how you choose to exercise that right and all of your rights,” he added.
GOP state lawmaker describes seeing "a riot days prior" when Alex Pretti was seen kicking a taillight
Minnesota’s Republican State Rep. Elliott Engen said that while people have a legal right to carry guns, it’s different “when you are trying to get in the way of law enforcement officers.”
When asked if he would characterize the situation a “riot” where Alex Pretti was seen using a cellphone moments before his death last weekend, Engen responded, “I saw a riot days prior when he kicked out a taillight and then continued to try to raise tensions with law enforcement.”
Engen blamed Gov. Tim Walz for the situation, saying if the Democrat had not refused hand over 1,600 individuals to federal agents, “we wouldn’t be talking about two dead Minnesotans.”
Some context: You can read more details here about a physical clash between Pretti and federal agents over a week before he was fatally shot.
