Rep. Ilhan Omar on Sunday sharply criticized the Trump administration’s expanding immigration enforcement presence in Minneapolis, describing federal officers as an “occupying force” and accusing the government of using fear as a tactic.
“Federal law enforcement is being sent as an occupying force into Minneapolis,” Omar said during an appearance on MS NOW’s The Weekend. She added that immigration officers are operating in a “lawless” manner as federal authorities continue to escalate their response following a deadly shooting last week.
The comments came days after ICE officer Jonathan Ross fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis on Wednesday, an incident that has triggered widespread protests and renewed scrutiny of federal immigration operations in cities across the country. Omar joined other Democrats on Capitol Hill in condemning the growing presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection officers in urban areas.
According to reports, the administration has already dispatched roughly 2,000 immigration officers to the Twin Cities, part of a broader federal probe into alleged fraud within Minnesota’s social services programs.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday that the department is further increasing its footprint in the region. Speaking on Fox News’s Sunday Morning Futures, Noem told host Maria Bartiromo that hundreds more officers are expected to arrive.
“We’re sending more officers today and tomorrow that will arrive,” Noem said. “There will be hundreds more in order to allow our ICE and our Border Patrol individuals that are working in Minneapolis to do so safely.”
Minnesota’s top Democratic leaders have pushed back forcefully. Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey have both criticized the federal deployment. Hours after Good was killed, Frey publicly called for ICE to leave the city.
“We do not want you here,” Frey said at a press conference. “Your stated reason for being in this city is to create some kind of safety, and you are doing exactly the opposite.”
Omar echoed that sentiment, arguing that the administration’s enforcement strategy has little to do with public safety and everything to do with intimidation.
“There is no reason to be roaming the streets, stopping people, stopping cars, trying to go door by door in a neighborhood, as they were doing on that fateful Wednesday when they did kill someone,” she said.
“This is to create fear,” Omar added. “It’s to terrorize our communities. It is to tell us that we are powerless.”
As federal authorities continue to pour resources into Minneapolis, the clash between the Trump administration and Minnesota’s Democratic leadership shows no sign of easing, with immigration enforcement, public safety, and civil liberties colliding in the wake of a deadly encounter.
