January 27, 2026

CHANGE: The Minnesota 180 on ICE.

Something dramatic has changed up in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Keep in mind, on Sunday night, another clash outside another hotel in the Minneapolis area turned out differently, as federal officers responded before the Minneapolis Police Department could get its officers in place:

According to an MPD spokesperson, officers received reports of a group protesting outside the Hilton Home2 Suites and making noise. An MPD officer inside the building was assigned to keep guests and staff safe while providing real-time updates to the department.

As the crowd became “disorderly,” MPD said it began its plan to move in, de-escalate the situation and make arrests. Personnel on standby were recalled to duty, patrol officers across the city were called in, and the department requested mutual aid from the Minnesota State Patrol, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and several metro area law enforcement agencies.

After forming a plan, MPD and assisting agencies prepared to surround the crowd, issue dispersal orders and make mass arrests. Before they moved in, MPD said federal law enforcement arrived on scene “without notice or communication” and deployed chemical munitions. MPD stated it did not deploy any chemical munitions.

Was Sunday night’s sequence of events a garden-variety matter of local police wanting a plan in place before they engaged a disorderly crowd, less than 48 hours after a controversial shooting? Or was it foot-dragging, aligned with local officials’ opposition to the presence of ICE in their city and state?

My money is on the latter:

UPDATE:

Posted at 12:00 pm by Ed Driscoll