Minnesota AG Keith Ellison Fights Back Against Trump's Immigration War Zone

A City Under Siege

Earlier this year, parts of Minneapolis looked like an occupied city. Thousands of masked agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol flooded the streets in what the Trump administration dubbed Operation Metro Surge. The result was chaos, fear, and death.

"It felt like a siege," Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison told Reveal's More To The Story podcast. "It felt like nobody was safe."

The numbers tell a grim story. Thousands of immigrants were detained during the operation, many with no criminal record whatsoever. Children were arrested. High school students were pepper-sprayed. And in the most devastating outcome, two US citizens -- Renée Good and Alex Pretti -- were shot and killed by immigration agents.

Ellison responded by suing the Department of Homeland Security to shut down the operation. After weeks of protests and mounting pressure, the White House scaled back enforcement. But hundreds of agents remain in Minneapolis, and the damage lingers.

The Economic and Human Toll

The Trump administration's immigration raids didn't just terrorize immigrant communities -- they devastated the local economy. Ellison points to businesses shuttered, workers too afraid to leave their homes, and families torn apart by a federal government that treated an American city like enemy territory.

"I am not going to abandon my post in the middle of this Trump onslaught," Ellison says.

The fear persists even as enforcement has decreased. Immigrant communities remain on edge, unsure if another wave of raids is coming. State officials like Ellison are left to pick up the pieces while the federal government moves on to its next target.

Taking on Josh Hawley

Ellison's confrontations with the Trump administration extend beyond immigration. He recently clashed with Senator Josh Hawley over a Covid-19 fraud scheme, calling out what he sees as selective enforcement and political grandstanding.

The Minnesota AG has become one of the most vocal state-level opponents of Trump's policies, using his office to challenge federal overreach at every turn. His lawsuit against DHS over Operation Metro Surge is just one front in a broader legal battle to protect civil rights and constitutional limits on executive power.

What Comes Next

With hundreds of federal agents still deployed in Minneapolis and the Trump administration showing no signs of backing down from its hardline immigration agenda, Ellison's fight is far from over. He's clear about his role: holding the line against what he describes as authoritarian tactics that have no place in American cities.

The question now is whether other state officials will follow his lead -- or whether Minnesota will continue to stand largely alone against federal immigration enforcement that treats US cities like war zones and US citizens like collateral damage.

For Ellison, the choice is simple. "I am not going to abandon my post," he says. In Trump's America, that kind of defiance has become an act of resistance.