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If President Donald Trump decides to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy the military into Minneapolis to halt anti-ICE violence, the state’s elected leaders have only themselves to blame.
Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey purposely lit a fuse on the powder keg of unrest immediately after last week’s tragic shooting of a motorist in a confrontation with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Without waiting for the facts to emerge, Frey called the claim of self-defense “bullshit” and shouted for ICE to get the f**k out of Minneapolis.” As demonstrations devolved into bedlam and violence, Frey blamed federal agents. That’s like blaming a bank for enticing the robber.
PROTESTERS CLASH WITH FEDERAL OFFICERS AFTER ANOTHER ICE SHOOTING IN MINNEAPOLIS
Not to be outdone, Walz tossed high-octane gasoline on the blaze.
Having previously denounced ICE as a “modern-day Gestapo,” the governor praised protesters while accusing ICE of imagined “atrocities” and “organized brutality.” It was music to the ears of activists who screamed, “Nazis!” and “fascists!” in the agents’ faces.
Fiery remarks tend to ignite fires.
So, inevitably, more ugly clashes erupted on the streets as crowds raged. An American flag was burned. Rioters and organized groups alike harassed and obstructed ICE. Some used their SUVs to block agents. Others conspired to “de-arrest” suspects. Never mind that interfering with federal law enforcement constitutes crimes.
It escalated after a second shooting when a federal officer was ambushed and beaten as he tried to effectuate a legitimate arrest. Agitators hurled rocks, bottles and fireworks at ICE agents. Federal vehicles were vandalized and looted.
One demolished car was defaced with graffiti that read, “Hang Kristi Noem,” the Homeland Security Secretary. The angry mob also spray-painted the words, “The only good agent is a dead one.”
As bedlam reigned, local police did little or nothing to stem the chaos. That should come as no surprise in this notorious sanctuary city where the fanciful rights and privileges of illegal migrants supersede the rights of law-abiding citizens.
Deputy U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche warned, “The Minnesota insurrection is a direct result of a failed governor and a terrible mayor encouraging violence against law enforcement. It’s disgusting.” Blanche’s use of the word “insurrection” was both correct and deliberate.
It is broadly defined as a violent uprising or revolt against government authority.
As the violence swelled, President Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act if Minnesota’s leaders refused to protect federal officers and ensure public safety. He has the legal right and power to do so.
This would mean flooding the city with military forces instead of federalizing the National Guard, as he has done elsewhere to suppress civil disorder arising from the enforcement of immigration laws.
As I explained in two earlier columns, the Insurrection Act has been utilized numerous times in American history by previous presidents. In 1957, President Dwight Eisenhower sent U.S. troops to Little Rock, Arkansas to enforce federal civil rights laws in the face of a hostile governor and mob violence.
President John F. Kennedy did the same thing in both Mississippi and Alabama. President George H. W. Bush dispatched troops to Los Angeles in 1992 to bring rioting under control where local authorities failed or refused. In all, fifteen Presidents have employed the Insurrection Act dating all the way back to Thomas Jefferson.
Uninformed critics erroneously assert that Trump is barred from acting by the Posse Comitatus Act that prohibits the use of federal troops for policing on domestic soil. This is a frivolous argument since the Insurrection Act is a well-established exception to Posse Comitatus.
In the recent legal kerfuffle over National Guard troops, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh emphasized “the president’s long-asserted Article II authority to use the U.S. military (as distinct from the National Guard) to protect federal personnel and property and thereby ensure the execution of federal law.”
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That is precisely what Trump would do in Minneapolis — protect ICE agents and their federal property from the ongoing violence while enforcing immigration and deportation laws. But, he also has the authority to quell the general rioting, as Bush did.
When and whether to invoke the Act is an exclusive power of the president. However, it does not mean that exerting it is the most prudent or wise decision. In its Friday editorial, The Wall Street Journal counseled against it.
The Journal argues that “events in Minnesota are so far nowhere near the standard for riots and destruction that would justify such a move.” Moreover, calling in federal troops “could incite more protests.” Finally, it is an election year, which presents its own calculus.
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These are fair points and are surely part of President Trump’s deliberations.
Having the power to act can be tempting. But wisdom is also found in restraint.
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