Minnesota says Trump's immigration crackdown is unconstitutional attempt to extort voter rolls
Source: Law & Crime
Jan 26th, 2026, 4:55 pm
A federal judge in Minnesota pressed the Justice Department as to whether the Trump administration's immigration crackdown was also an unconstitutional effort to strong-arm state and local officials into complying with the president's policy demands. The hearing came as tensions have reached a fever pitch in the wake of federal agents killing 37-year-old Alex Pretti, a U.S. citizen and licensed gun owner who was shot in the back several times after being disarmed on the streets of Minneapolis.
U.S. District Court Judge Katherine M. Menendez presided over the hearing Monday, appearing skeptical both of the federal government's reason for sending thousands of federal troops into the city, as well as her own authority to curb "Operation Metro Surge," regardless of the true motivation behind the enforcement action.
Earlier this month, the state filed a lawsuit seeking a temporary restraining order immediately blocking the surge while the court decides the case on the merits. Minnesota contended the administration was violating the 10th Amendment, which reinforces federalism, by using the invasion to coerce Trump's political agenda on the state.
At the start of the hearing, attorneys for the state demanded the court halt the "unlawful and unchecked invasion" of the city by agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol, Politico's Kyle Cheney reported.
Read more: https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/its-a-shakedown-minnesota-says-trumps-immigration-crackdown-is-unconstitutional-attempt-to-extort-voter-rolls-and-bend-the-states-will-to-its-own/
Full headline: 'It's a shakedown': Minnesota says Trump's immigration crackdown is unconstitutional attempt to extort voter rolls and 'bend the state's will to its own'