(NewsNation) — The Trump administration is deploying thousands of federal officers to Minnesota as part of its response to fraud allegations and illegal immigration.
Fraud investigations involving state-funded social services have prompted Minnesota’s Democratic Gov. Tim Walz to end his campaign for a third term.
Walz has denied any personal wrongdoing but said he would focus his remaining time in office on rooting out fraud and restoring public trust rather than running for reelection.
In a news conference Tuesday, Walz said he decided not to run for reelection after a discussion with his family, saying it was “the right decision.”
Trump, Gov. Tim Walz trade barbs amid fraud investigation
President Donald Trump reacted to Walz’s news swiftly, writing on social media that the governor “was caught, red-handed, along with Ilhan Omar, and others of his Somali friends, stealing tens of billions of taxpayer dollars.”
There is no evidence linking Omar or Walz to the fraud allegations.
Walz slammed what he called bad faith, politically motivated attacks against him, accusing Trump and his allies of exploiting the situation.
“Even as we make progress in the fight against the fraudsters, we now see an organized group of political actors seeking to take advantage of a crisis,” Walz said. “I don’t want to mince words here. Donald Trump and his allies in Washington, St. Paul, and online want to make our state a colder, meaner place, want to poison our people against each other by attacking our neighbors.”
Walz said he has no regrets about his decision and hopes to rebuild confidence in Minnesota during his final year in office.
The Minnesota governor continued to hit back at the Trump administration in his remarks Tuesday, saying the state was under assault unlike any time in the state’s history because of a “petty, vile administration that doesn’t care about the well-being of Minnesotans.”
DHS deploys 2K ICE officers to Minneapolis
The Department of Homeland Security is sending roughly 2,000 additional Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to the Twin Cities, according to DHS sources.
They’ll reportedly oversee a 30-day operation as part of Trump’s broader immigration crackdown.
DHS is also reportedly deploying additional Border Patrol agents to Minneapolis, marking one of the largest federal immigration enforcement operations since the administration’s crackdown began.