Homan says drawdown in Minnesota possible, state seeks immediate legal relief
Border Czar suggest drawdown in federal agents in MN
Border Czar Tom Homan says their new strategy could be to drawdown of federal agents in Minnesota, but it is unclear what that would look like. FOX 9's Soyoung Kim has more.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Border Czar Tom Homan said Thursday the new strategic direction in Minnesota could lead to a drawdown of federal immigration agents.
This comes as a legal battle between the State of Minnesota and the federal government plays out in court.
State seeking immediate relief
The backstory:
In a joint lawsuit filed earlier this month, the State of Minnesota and the Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul sued the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to put an end to the immigration enforcement surge. This was just days after Renee Good was fatally shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer.
On Monday, a federal judge heard arguments from both parties. This was just days after Border Patrol agents fatally shot Alex Pretti. State attorneys argue the federal government is violating the state’s constitutional protections, including state sovereignty.
In a filing Wednesday, the federal government defended their operation as having an "exclusively lawful purpose" to "enforce federal law in Minnesota." Justice Department attorneys asked the court to deny the motion for a preliminary injunction.
The City of Minneapolis also submitted additional exhibits Wednesday in support of a motion seeking immediate relief. It included the latest social media exchange between President Donald Trump and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.
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What they're saying:
Frey addressing the matter while in Washington D.C. for the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
"The president mentioned yesterday that I was playing with fire by not enforcing federal immigration laws. So, our police officers will do their jobs. They're not going to do somebody else's job," said Frey.
Meanwhile, Homan spoke about finding solutions Thursday amid ongoing tensions in Minnesota between local and federal officials over Operation Metro Surge.
"More agents in the jail means less agents on the street. This is common sense cooperation that allows to draw down on the number of people we have here. Yes, I said draw down the number of people here," said Homan. "Matter of fact, I have staff from CBP and from ICE working on a drawdown plan, what that would look like based on the cooperation."
What's next:
The U.S. District Court Judge did not rule on the case during the hearing and not specify if or when a decision could be made.