VP JD Vance says Minnesota officials need to "lower the temperature and lower the chaos" during visit
Vice President JD Vance was in Minneapolis on Thursday for a roundtable with local leaders and community members amid the federal government's immigration crackdown in the state.
After the roundtable, Vance delivered remarks, pushing local officials and police to work with federal law enforcement.
Vance is the federal government's latest envoy to the state amid multiple Department of Justice investigations and the ongoing presence of overwhelming numbers of immigration agents.
Here's the latest on the ICE surge in Minnesota
- A federal appeals court on Wednesday temporarily paused a judge's ruling that restricted the force federal agents can use on peaceful protesters in Minneapolis.
- Vice President JD Vance at a press conference in Minneapolis pushed for state and local elected officials to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement to "lower the temperature and lower the chaos."
- A top Minnesota law enforcement official is rejecting repeated accusations by the Department of Homeland Security that state authorities have been releasing hundreds of dangerous criminals into the streets, rather than turning them over to federal immigration agents.
- Two men detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement appeared in federal court hearings Wednesday, including the Venezuelan national who was shot in the leg by ICE agents last week in north Minneapolis. Both were granted conditional release, but the decision has been stayed until noon Thursday. They do have ICE detainers, so they will likely end up in ICE custody again.
- Faith leaders held a news conference Tuesday in the Twin Cities to announce the participation of "hundreds of Minnesota places of worship" in A Day of Truth and Freedom — which calls for people to not work, shop or go to school this Friday.
Vance acknowledges Minnesota DOC cooperating with ICE
In his visit to Minnesota Thursday, Vice President JD Vance appeared to acknowledge that the Minnesota Department of Corrections, overseen by Gov. Tim Walz, was cooperating with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"Look, if I was going to list the five agencies locally and statewide I'm most worried about, I wouldn't put the Department of Corrections on that list," Vance said in a news conference when asked by CBS News if the state was cooperating. "I think that while there are certain things we'd like to see more from them, they've hardly been the worst offenders."
His acknowledgement came after he implored state leaders to help deescalate the situation in Minneapolis.
"What I do think that we can do is working with state and local officials, we can make the worst moments of chaos, much less common, and all they've got to do is meet us halfway," Vance said in a news conference.
Greg Bovino criticizes MPD for not helping ICE agents
A day after Border Patrol Commander at Large Greg Bovino was seen in Minneapolis streets, he is calling out local police for not helping federal agents deal with protesters.
When asked if they called for help, he only mentioned they did at some point.
"Minneapolis Police Department's been called on several situations that they have not responded," Bovino said.
In response to Bovino's claims, the Minneapolis Police Department said it "receives and processes numerous 911 reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity throughout the city each day," but it has "no record of a request from federal agents for assistance" on Wednesday.
"The presence of protestors alone is not sufficient reason for MPD to respond where ICE activity is occurring," a spokesperson for the Minneapolis Police Department said.
Gov. Walz to VP Vance: "actions speak louder than words"
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz responded to Vice President JD Vance's remarks, agreeing "the temperature needs to be turned down."
"I'm glad the Vice President agrees the temperature needs to be turned down, but actions speak louder than words," Walz said. "We don't need 3,000 ice agents in our streets — more than every local police department combined. Take the show of force off the streets and partner with the state on targeted enforcement of violent offenders instead of random, aggressive confrontation."
White House posts altered photo of activist's arrest
The White House posted a photo on social media that was digitally altered to make it look like a protester was sobbing as she was arrested in connection with a protest against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at a Minnesota church.
A photo of Nekima Levy Armstrong's arrest — showing Armstrong with a neutral expression — was first posted on X by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Thursday morning. The image the White House posted appears the same except Armstrong's altered facial expression shows her distressed, with tears running down her face.
The White House posted the image of Armstrong seemingly crying with a caption calling her "a far-left agitator," roughly 30 minutes after Noem posted the initial image. The altered version was also reposted on X by Vice President JD Vance.
VP Vance pushes for local, state officials to cooperate with immigration enforcement
Vice President JD Vance at a press conference in Minneapolis pushed for state and local elected officials to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement to "lower the temperature and lower the chaos."
"The number one thing that I learned today is that the best way to facilitate reasonable enforcement of the law, but also lower the chaos in Minneapolis would be for state and local officials to cooperate," Vance said after meeting with business leaders, ICE officials and local law enforcement.
He advocated for local police officers to come to the aid of ICE agents when they're surrounded by protesters.
"When a crowd surrounds them, and [federal agents] call 911, the local officials, the local cops have been told to stand down," he said.
In other Democratic cities like Austin, Texas and Memphis, Tennessee, Vance said immigration enforcement has gone smoothly.
"The reason it hasn't happened here, is because the local authorities have been told, stand down, do not help ICE, promote the violence, promote the agitation, but don't do anything to lower the temperature and lower the chaos. That's a problem," he said.
He said he was hopeful that there will be more collaboration in the future.
When asked by a reporter what the role of the federal government's role is to turn down the temperature, Vance said that President Trump told him to "meet this guys halfway, work with them, so that we can make these immigration enforcement operations successful without endangering our ICE officers."
Judge rejects charges against Don Lemon over church protest
A Minnesota federal magistrate judge refused to sign a complaint charging independent journalist Don Lemon in connection with a protest inside a church in St. Paul on Sunday, multiple sources familiar with the proceedings told CBS News.
"The attorney general is enraged at the magistrate's decision," said a source familiar with the matter. Attorney General Pam Bondi has been in Minnesota for two days, as the Justice Department has sought to surge prosecutorial and law enforcement resources there.
A different source stressed that the process is not over, and the Justice Department could find other avenues to charge Lemon.
On Thursday morning, Bondi announced two arrests connected to the church protest — Chauntyll Louisa Allen, who serves on the St. Paul School Board, and Nekima Levy Armstrong. Bondi alleged that Armstrong was involved in organizing the protest.
A source familiar with the matter confirmed that a magistrate judge approved charges against Allen and Armstrong.
BCA asks public for video, information about north Minneapolis ICE shooting
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension says it's continuing an investigation into a shooting last week, in which a federal officer shot a man in north Minneapolis.
The BCA says it responded to the scene to collect evidence, but were not able to finish their work "due to safety concerns" that night. The shooting had led to a protest, during which time Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara said his officers were hit with rocks, fireworks and snowballs.
BCA investigators did recover a shovel and left the scene, returning Wednesday to execute a search warrant. The BCA says its agents recovered a broom, a shell casing and a bullet.
The BCA says an FBI investigation is running parallel to their own probe, but they say they have not been permitted to speak with the federal officer who shot the man. BCA officials say they have not been provided with the officer's identity, and the FBI has not shared whether the officer was wearing a body camera.
"The FBI has communicated that they do not intend to share any results of their initial investigation with BCA agents," the BCA said in a release on Thursday.
The bureau is requesting that anyone with information, or anyone who captured video of the incident, send it to the BCA at bca.tips@state.mn.us.
University of Minnesota confirms arrests in Graduate Hotel protest
There have been more arrests in protests outside the Graduate by Hilton Hotel near the University of Minnesota.
University police responded to the protest on Wednesday evening, and three people were later arrested for unlawful assembly, the university said. No injuries were reported.
"The UMPD, as part of its mission, believes in the right to engage in peaceful protest and is committed to the safety of our campus community," the university said.
Last week, three other people were arrested at the hotel. Protesters were making noise to disturb the federal agents they believed were staying at the hotel. The university said the protest resulted in property damage and "hazardous conditions for the public and law enforcement."
Greg Bovino accuses MPD of not answering federal agents' calls for help
U.S. Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino, appearing at a press conference Thursday morning, took some time to criticize the Minneapolis Police Department for allegedly not helping out during Wednesday's protests, during which federal agents claimed they were being "stalked."
"Hey, folks, where were the cops yesterday? Where was Minneapolis Police Department during that eight-hour stalking events? Anybody care to venture a guess? I'd like to venture a guess. And it's: I don't know," Bovino said.
When asked if his agency explicitly called MPD for help, Bovino only mentioned they did at some point.
"We're here, and we are going to accomplish the mission. I'm glad to be here. Our agents are ecstatic to be here. ICE agents are glad to be here," Bovino concluded.
WCCO has reached out to the Minneapolis Police Department and are awaiting its response.
JD Vance says message to MN will be: "Stop fighting immigration enforcement ... it's not that hard"
The White House says Vice President JD Vance has left and is now en route to Minnesota, where he plans to meet with ICE agents and defend their immigration operations.
Vance shared a preview of his message ahead of his travel.
"We're gonna talk with some of our ICE agents, talk with local officials about how we can turn down the chaos, and my simple piece of advice to them is gonna be, 'Look, if you want to turn down the chaos in Minneapolis, stop fighting immigration enforcement and accept that we have to have a border in this country.' It's not that hard," Vance said.
Vance's visit comes days after the Justice Department subpoenaed several Minnesota officials as part of an investigation into whether state and local leaders have obstructed federal immigration enforcement efforts.
"We're going to get illegal criminals out of our country and we're not going to let a few left-wing radicals stop us," Vance added.
AG Pam Bondi announces arrests in church protest
Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday announced that two people have been arrested in connection with the disruption of services at a church where a local official with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement serves as a pastor.
Bondi announced the arrests of Nekima Levy Armstrong and Chauntyll Louisa Allen on social media.
The incident happened on Sunday, as a group joined services at the Cities Church in St. Paul before chanting "ICE out" and "Justice for Renee Good." One of the church's pastors, David Easterwood, leads the local ICE field office, and one of the leaders of the protest and prominent local activist Armstrong said she's also an ordained pastor.
ICE takes 5-year-old boy and his father after using boy to get father to answer front door, school district says
School district officials in Columbia Heights, Minnesota, say their sense of security is shaken and their hearts shattered after four students from the district were recently taken by officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
An immigration lawyer has been working around the clock since ICE detentions began
Operation Metro Surge started in the Twin Cities metro area nearly two months ago. The Trump administration says they've arrested at least 3,000 immigrants in Minnesota. But federal officials have released only limited information about those who have been detained.
When WCCO looked at cases online, most filed recently are habeas corpus, which an attorney clarifies means someone is in federal custody who maybe shouldn't be.
"Not a single one of my clients detained has a criminal record and all of them were in a process of some kind," said immigration lawyer Carrie Peltier.
Peltier says she's been working nonstop for the past year.
