Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Tuesday blasted a Politico reporter, accusing him of posting a social media comment that appeared to encourage violence against federal agents investigating fraud in Minnesota's child care system.
The issue arose after Josh Gerstein, Politico's senior legal affairs reporter, commented on social media about reporting tied to the Somali daycare fraud scandal, which was exposed in part by independent journalist Nick Shirley's visits to multiple Somali-run child care centers in the Minneapolis area.
"At some point, the amateur effort to knock on doors of home daycares intersects with robust stand-your-ground laws," Gerstein wrote in a post on X.
"You would think a 'Senior Legal Affairs Reporter' for POLITICO would know better than to tweet something inciting violence against federal agents," ICE responded on social media.
Gerstein issued a clarification for his earlier tweet.
"To observe that something is likely to happen or there's a serious risk of it happening is not to advocate for it happening," Gerstein wrote.
White House deputy assistant Sebastian Gorka ripped Gerstein on Newsmax.
"The idea that you're conflating what, a burglar breaking into your house and being allowed to use deadly force against that burglar, as opposed to a young reporter who's getting to the bottom of billions of dollars of bilked taxpayer funding?" Gorka said on "Rob Schmitt Tonight."
"That quote, unquote legal expert is doing what the left always does, which is normalizing violence," Gorka added.
The allegations gained national attention following a video released by Shirley late last week. Shirley's video has surpassed 2.2 million views on YouTube and more than 127 million views on X as of Tuesday night.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) promptly dispatched agents to Minneapolis to conduct its own investigation.
"The American people demand answers and accountability," DHS wrote on social media.
"Our agents are conducting a massive operation to identify, arrest, and remove criminals who are defrauding the American people at daycares, healthcare facilities, and other suspected sites," DHS added.
"We will not stop until we've rooted out this rampant fraud plaguing Minnesota," DHS continued.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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