The shooting of a 37-year-old woman by a federal immigration agent in Minneapolis is a tragedy, no matter what narrative emerges as more information becomes available. It’s important to ascertain all the facts about the deadly encounter and not rush to judgement. Yet videos of the scene, and an already overheated political environment, risk more violence.
A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman said the driver, identified as U.S. citizen Renee Nicole Good, attempted to “run over” law enforcement officers in an act of “domestic terrorism” that required an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer to fire three shots. Trump posted on social media that the driver “violently, willfully, and viciously ran over the ICE Officer, who seems to have shot her in self defense.”
Yet, while additional information can always emerge, so far social media clips do not show a situation that would justify using deadly force. Disregarding instructions from police is unacceptable, and any violence against law enforcement ought to be prosecuted, but it’s unclear if the woman intended to hit anyone with her vehicle.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) said the National Guard is ready to deploy if riots break out, something he was too slow to do after George Floyd’s murder in 2020. But he pleaded with protesters to remain peaceful. “They want a show,” he said. “We can’t give it to them.”
Walz is right that Trump could use unrest to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy U.S. troops to Minnesota. (A recent defeat at the Supreme Court otherwise limited his authority to commandeer the National Guard.) The president posted on social media: “We need to stand by and protect our Law Enforcement Officers from this Radical Left Movement of Violence and Hate!”
Americans have the right to voice their frustration, but they should remember that violence undermines their message and distracts from potential accountability for the shooting. The uglier protests get, the easier it will be for the Trump administration to distract from scrutiny of the shooting.
Americans have seen violent clashes play out for months as ICE takes a maximalist approach to its deportation campaign in predominantly liberal cities. Immigration officers have been involved in more than a dozen shootings during Trump’s second term. Just a day before the shooting, the administration announced it would send 2,000 federal agents to the Minneapolis metro area to conduct the “largest immigration operation ever.” DHS reported arresting 150 illegal immigrants on Monday alone.
The Trump administration cited the ongoing Somalia fraud saga in Minneapolis as a reason for mass deportations. If an illegal immigrant is found guilty of a criminal offense, of course they should be deported. At the same time, welfare fraud is not uniquely an immigration problem. Most Somalis in Minnesota are U.S. citizens.
Before the shooting, Walz described the federal enforcement surge as “a war that’s being waged against Minnesota.” After the incident, MAGA allies quickly sought to blame Walz’s rhetoric, including his previous comparison of ICE to the Gestapo, for raising tensions. But even Trump’s biggest fans should be able to admit he isn’t exactly known for his calming political presence. And the messaging of his deportation campaign has been consistently inflammatory by design.
Americans fed up with the wave of illegal immigration propelled Trump to the presidency, and shutting down the border is popular. The tragedy in Minnesota only underscores that the mass deportation campaign, on the other hand, is a moral and political failure.
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