Minnesota state Rep. Peggy Bennett, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, told Newsmax on Friday that federal immigration enforcement actions are making communities safer and criticized protests and judges she said are standing in the way of removing criminals from the streets.
Bennett spoke on "National Report" amid heightened attention on Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Minnesota and protests billed as a "Day of Action," including an economic blackout in Minneapolis calling for no work, no school and no spending in opposition to ICE.
"And this is what we need. We need to take these people off the streets," Bennett said. "Unfortunately in Minnesota they've been let go time and time again without cooperating with ICE."
Bennett said repeated failures to cooperate with federal authorities have created public safety problems across the state.
"We're having issues now. This is a bad thing, but it's a good thing that we're getting these criminals off the streets, keeping people safer," she said.
Asked about the planned economic blackout and protests against ICE, Bennett said she has heard from constituents in southern Minnesota who oppose the demonstrations.
"I have heard it. And in my area of southern Minnesota, people are disgusted with this," Bennett said. "Why do we want to keep these criminals on the streets? That's what these people are promoting, which is ridiculous."
She added, "People want criminals off the streets. The people who are here illegally who are criminals should be gone. And these people who are protesting this, it's incomprehensible."
Bennett also criticized members of the judiciary, accusing some judges of blocking arrests tied to immigration enforcement.
"The other issue is we have activist judges in Minnesota who are not allowing these arrests to happen," she said. "And that's got to stop."
Bennett called for greater oversight of judges and changes to state law.
"We need more transparency for these judges," she said. "We need to have a recall process in place for these judges because they're not following the Constitution. That's a huge issue."
Her comments came after a recent protest disrupted a worship service at a church in St. Paul, prompting arrests of several demonstrators. Authorities said the incident caused congregants to flee as the service was interrupted.
Bennett condemned the disruption of the church service, calling it unconstitutional.
"Completely unfair. Completely unconstitutional to disrupt a worship service like that," she said.
Bennett said she supports press freedoms but argued they do not extend to violating constitutional protections.
"I'm all for freedom of the press. We must have that," she said. "But it doesn't mean they get to go and break the Constitution again."
She again returned to criticism of the judiciary, citing a judge's refusal to approve an arrest warrant in connection with the incident.
"We have judges. That judge would not sign the warrant for his arrest, and we need to have these activist judges recalled," Bennett said.
GET TODAY NEWSMAX+:
NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America with more than 30 million people watching!
Reuters Institute reports NEWSMAX is one of the top news brands in the U.S.
You need to watch NEWSMAX today.
Get it with great shows from Rob Schmitt, Greta Van Susteren, Greg Kelly, Carl Higbie, Rob Finnerty – and many more!
Find the NEWSMAX channel on your cable system – Go Here Now
BEST OFFER:
Sign up for NEWSMAX+ and get NEWSMAX, our streaming channel NEWSMAX2 and our military channel World at War.
Find hundreds of shows, movies and specials.
Even get Jon Voight's special series and President Trump's comedy programs and much more!
Watch NEWSMAX+ on your smartphone or home TV app.
Watch NEWSMAX anytime, anywhere!
Start your FREE trial now: NewsmaxPlus.com
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.