White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Monday laid out the Trump administration’s requirements to end its deportation surge in Minnesota. Notably missing: some of the demands made over the weekend by Attorney General Pam Bondi, such as turning over the state’s voter rolls.
Leavitt said at a press conference that to see a reduction in immigration forces, Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey must end so-called “sanctuary” policies, cooperate with immigration agents to identify unauthorized immigrants actively in custody for other crimes and have local police assist in detaining migrants who have committed crimes.
“If Gov. Walz and Mayor Frey implement these common-sense cooperative measures, CBP will no longer be needed to support ICE on the ground in Minnesota,” Leavitt said.
It was a shift from a letter published by Bondi on Saturday, which included demands for the state to allow the Department of Justice to access Minnesota’s voter rolls and for the state to share records related to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
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In her letter, Bondi similarly called the requests “common sense solutions” that would “restore the rule of law, support ICE officers, and bring an end to the chaos in Minnesota.”
The White House did not comment on the differences between the “solutions” proposed by Leavitt and Bondi.
The Trump administration is facing considerable backlash — some of it from within the Republican Party — for its actions after a federal immigration agent shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday, the second fatal shooting by an agent there this month.
In response, Trump and Leavitt shifted in tone somewhat from top officials’ comments on the shooting. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and senior Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino quickly said Saturday, before any investigation, that Pretti had been a threat to agents. Many of the officials’ claims about what happened were contradicted by bystander video.
Leavitt repeatedly deflected questions related to administration officials referring to Pretti as a “domestic terrorist,” and said that Trump had not used similar language.
“This has obviously been a very fluid and fast-moving situation throughout the weekend. As for President Trump, whom I speak for, he has said that he wants to let the investigation continue and let the facts lead in this case,” Leavitt said
Earlier Monday, Trump said in a post on Truth Social that he had a “very good call” with Walz, whom he previously accused of inciting violence against immigration enforcement.
“Governor Tim Walz called me with the request to work together with respect to Minnesota,” Trump wrote. “It was a very good call, and we, actually, seemed to be on a similar wavelength. I told Governor Walz that I would have Tom Homan call him, and that what we are looking for are any and all criminals that they have in their possession. The Governor, very respectfully, understood that, and I will be speaking to him in the near future.”
Walz’s office said the governor had a “productive” call with Trump, and that he agreed to speak with the Department of Homeland Security about including the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension in the investigation into Pretti’s killing and reducing the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the state.
But intense friction remains between the administration and state and local officials. Walz has criticized the lack of transparency from federal agencies and said state investigators were being sidelined.
While Leavitt emphasized that multiple investigations are taking place, she did not commit to looping in state or local officials.
Trump also announced Monday that his border czar, Tom Homan, would be arriving in Minneapolis on Monday to manage immigration operations.
Leavitt said Bovino would continue to oversee Border Patrol operations across the country, while Homan would take point in Minnesota.
She dismissed questions about whether the Homan move meant Trump had lost faith in Noem.
“Secretary Noem still has the utmost confidence and trust of the president of the United States, and she’s continuing to oversee the entire Department of Homeland Security and all of the immigration enforcement that’s taking place across the whole entire country,” Leavitt said.
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