Gov. Walz files 16 FOIA requests to identify how Trump administration is "targeting" Minnesota

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said Tuesday his office filed 16 Freedom of Information Act requests with federal agencies in an effort to understand how those departments are "targeting" the state.

Walz requested records, communications and writings referencing the terms "Minnesota," "Walz," "reckoning," "retribution," "punish" and "Democrat" stretching back to the day President Donald Trump took office in 2025.

The requests come a day after U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz blocked six grand jury subpoenas the Trump administration served against several Minnesota state and local government offices, calling them retaliatory and unlawful. Schiltz wrote in his ruling that using grand jury proceedings to pressure political opponents into taking official action is "a blatantly unlawful and unethical use of the grand-jury process."

"For nearly a year, Minnesotans have lived through a coordinated campaign of retribution from the Trump Administration," Walz said. "We have seen lawsuits, funding threats, and investigations from an administration looking to come after those who disagree with them. Yesterday, a judge confirmed what we have known all along. Today, we are taking steps to find out exactly how far this campaign reaches, who's directing it, and what it has cost Minnesotans."

Walz's office said the Freedom of Information Act requests will "help identify how federal agencies coordinated actions targeting Minnesota and who directed those efforts." The requests were filed with the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection among other agencies.