Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty said on Newsmax Saturday that Minnesota's dispute over federal immigration enforcement is rooted less in state policy than in city-level decisions, arguing local jurisdictions, including Minneapolis, are the "real problem."
Appearing on Newsmax's "Saturday Report," Pawlenty was asked why Democratic Gov. Tim Walz invoked Civil War-era imagery and whether that rhetoric risks escalating the moment.
"I'm not sure why he would go there," Pawlenty said, adding it came as he described "a good faith gesture by Tom Homan to try to at least set the tone of de-escalation."
For Pawlenty, "for him to roll out sort of the signal of another civil war, I think was really unfortunate," and he said "both sides need to climb down the ladder a rung or two."
Earlier this week, Walz expressed concern that Minnesota might be at the center of a national split. In an interview with The Atlantic, he asked, "I mean, is this a Fort Sumter?" referring to the South Carolina sea fort where the first battle of the Civil War occurred.
Pawlenty said, "Tom Homan has offered an olive branch, saying we could reduce the size of this surge somewhat if we could get some more cooperation," and he framed the next step as a practical question of coordination.
President Donald Trump appointed Homan to lead immigration enforcement in Minnesota as operations were being adjusted to "de-escalate" after two fatal shootings during the federal surge.
Homan said on Jan. 29 in Minneapolis that a drawdown of immigration enforcement officers in Minnesota would depend on "cooperation" from state and local officials.
"By the way, Minnesota is not a sanctuary state. They do honor detainers at a state level," Pawlenty said. "The real problem here is the local sanctuary cities, including Minneapolis, who do not fully cooperate with ICE in terms of those ICE detainers."
Minnesota's Department of Corrections said on Jan. 15 that "DOC honors all ICE detainers" and that it coordinated releases with ICE when detainers were in place for people in state prison custody.
However, the city of Minneapolis cites its separation ordinance, stating that city departments, including the police, do not participate in federal civil immigration enforcement and cannot interfere with federal enforcement activity.
Pawlenty argued any narrowed federal effort would still require local help, saying, "If ICE did reduce its footprint and bring in a small operational set, say, five people to catch a bad person and a known criminal, a convicted criminal who's here illegally, then they do need perimeter protection."
He posed the operational question this way:
"So if you're going to stand down the larger force from ICE, will the locals cooperate at least as to keeping the protesters at a safe distance so they're not interfering with the operation and endangering ICE officers and the protesters themselves?"
He added, "And those are the remaining questions to be answered."
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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