Tim Walz Won’t Rule Out Deploying National Guard To Protect Residents After ICE Shooting

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D-Minn.) said he was preparing to activate the Minnesota National Guard following the fatal shooting of a 37-year-old woman in south Minneapolis by a federal immigration agent.

“We do not need any further help from the federal government,” Walz said during a press conference in Minneapolis on Wednesday. “To Donald Trump and [Homeland Security Secretary] Kristi Noem: You’ve done enough.”

“I’ve issued a warning order to prepare the Minnesota National Guard,” Walz added. “These National Guard troops are our National Guard troops. Minnesota will not allow our community to be used as a prop in a national political fight.”

Asked how he planned to deploy the National Guard, Walz said he didn’t know yet before acknowledging the extraordinary nature of the situation, telling reporters, “We’ve never been at war with our federal government.”

The comment drew criticism from the White House, House Republicans and Trump-friendly commentators online.

Even before Wednesday’s shooting, Walz was under attack by the Trump administration over his handling of a welfare fraud scandal involving some Somali child care centers in Minnesota. Trump has also pushed baseless conspiracy theories online alleging that Walz was involved in slain Minnesota state lawmaker Melissa Hortman’s death last year.

“I don’t think any governor in history has had to fight a war against the federal government,” Walz said at an event on Tuesday. “What Donald Trump tweeted the other night put the Hortman children at risk. They have to look at security. Put my family at risk again. What he’s doing to the Somali community is absolutely unconscionable.”

Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice presidential nominee, announced last week he would no longer be seeking reelection to a third term in office in order to focus on bringing criminals responsible for fraud in his state to justice.

“We are under assault like no other time in our state’s history because of a petty, vile administration that doesn’t care about the well-being of Minnesotans,” Walz said. “My job is to protect the well-being of Minnesotans.”