Jan. 21, 2026, 7:29 p.m. ET
Minnesota’s political pressure cooker could get turned up to an even higher temperature when Vice President JD Vance lands in Minneapolis on Jan. 22.
The state has become ground zero in the battle over President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportation efforts as his administration expands immigration enforcement actions there in the wake of a deadly ICE-involved shooting. The president has threatened a military deployment to the state to quell protests and the Department of Justice on Jan. 20 subpoenaed Minnesota elected officials, including Gov. Tim Walz, with whom Trump and Vance have traded insults.
A White House official said Vance will meet with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and deliver remarks praising their work and criticizing Minneapolis “sanctuary” policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
The vice president’s office said in an email that he will focus “on restoring law and order in Minnesota.”
Vance has been one of the Trump administration’s loudest voices in defending ICE and condemning the backlash to federal immigration enforcement actions, and his trip is another sign that the administration is prepared to keep pushing hard on the issue.
“Trump doesn’t back down,” said Republican consultant Alex Conant. “As Democrats rallied against the ICE enforcement in Minneapolis, I think, very predictably, the Trump administration doubled down on it. And so… it continues to raise the stakes for what’s happening in Minneapolis.”
Trump opened a Jan. 20 White House press briefing commemorating his first year back in office by displaying pictures of individuals who have been detained in Minnesota and praising the operation.
“I think it’s appropriate because Minnesota’s so much in the fray,” Trump said before holding up pages with “Minnesota worst of the worst” written about photos of the detained individuals.
Yet the president also struck a softer tone on the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, saying he “felt terribly,” adding he was told her father was a “tremendous Trump fan” and “I hope he still feels that way.” He also said that sometimes ICE is “going to make mistakes.”
After Good’s death, Vance lashed out at Democrats and accused them of “rallying the mob against legitimate law enforcement operations.” He also blamed the 37-year-old mother for her own death while staunchly defending ICE and the agent who shot Good.
The immigration conflict is playing out against the backdrop of a sprawling fraud investigation into federal programs in Minnesota that has resulted in charges against dozens of Somali-Americans, an issue that has Democrats in the state on the defensive and one the Trump administration has been keen to highlight. Walz, the former Democratic vice-presidential nominee, opted not to seek reelection amid the fraud investigation.
Polls show partisan polarization over ICE tactics
Vance heads to the center of the unfolding drama as polls show ICE operations are increasingly unpopular.
A CNN survey after Good’s shooting found that a majority of adults do not view it as justified, say it reflects bigger problems with ICE and believe the agency is making cities less safe. A CBS poll found that 61% of Americans believe ICE is too tough when detaining people.
Good’s shooting sparked protests across the nation against ICE‘s tactics.
A new Wall Street Journal poll found a majority of voters now disapprove of Trump’s performance on immigration.
“Immigration is a nuanced and complicated issue but the administration treats it in very black and white terms,” Conant said. “Most of the time that works to their political advantage and some times they do things that make the majority of people uneasy. I think some of the pictures of the ICE raids make independent voters very uneasy.”
The vast majority of Republicans surveyed by CBS said anti-ICE protesters have gone too far, though. A Jan. 18 protest that disrupted a St. Paul church service is adding to the debate, with the Department of Justice launching an investigation.
As tensions continue to rise in Minnesota, Vance and Trump have shown little interest in taking down the temperature. The state is at the epicenter of a pair of key issues for the White House − immigration and government fraud − and “it only makes sense that the Trump administration’s going to do whatever they can to see this through” said Mark Bednar, a GOP strategist and former House Republican leadership aide.
Insurrection Act threat
Trump’s aggressive posture toward Minnesota includes threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act, which gives the president authority to deploy U.S. troops to suppress rebellions and civil unrest or when federal laws are being obstructed.
Military leaders recently ordered Army troops stationed in North Carolina to prepare for a potential deployment to Minnesota, MS Now reported. And 1,500 troops with the 11th Airborne Division have been placed on standby to deploy to Minnesota, a defense official told USA TODAY.
The Justice Department launched an investigation into Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey focused on whether they impeded federal immigration efforts, recently issuing them subpoenas, and the administration has surged immigration agents into the state. Walz called the investigation a “partisan distraction” in a Jan. 20 statement.
“Minnesota will not be intimidated into silence and neither will I,” Walz said.
Walz’s and Frey’s offices did not respond to a USA TODAY request for comment on Vance’s impending visit.
Vance often has served as an attack dog for the administration, including lashing out at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during an Oval Office visit.
The vice president made a rare appearance in the White House press briefing room on Jan. 8, where he slammed media coverage of Good’s shooting and staunchly defended ICE.
“The president stands with ICE,” Vance said. “I stand with ICE.”
Vance has called the shooting self defense, a narrative that Frey described as “garbage.” Frey called for ICE to leave the city.
The vice president blamed Good for the shooting, describing it as “a tragedy that falls on this woman.” He also said Good was part of a “broader left-wing network to attack, to dox, to assault and to make it impossible for ICE officers to do their job.”
The Trump administration hasn’t provided any public evidence that Good is linked to a broader network. A lawyer representing Good’s family, Antonio Romanucci, said the legal team is “actively addressing persistent false reports circulating online that mischaracterize Renee Good’s background.”
A push by the Justice Department to investigate Good’s widow prompted six federal prosecutors in Minnesota, including the office’s number two official, to resign, according to the New York Times.
Protests ramp up
Protesters clashed with federal agents in Minneapolis following Good’s shooting, and community organizers are now planning a statewide day of action on Jan. 23. They are calling for people to stay home from work and school and avoid shopping.
“It’s time for every single Minnesotan who loves this state and the notion of truth and freedom to raise their voices and deepen their solidarity for our neighbors and coworkers living under this federal occupation,” Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou, President of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, said in a statement.
Bednar said it could help the Trump administration to have Vance “on the ground” making the administration’s case “in a very visible way” and pushing back against Democratic leaders in the state who have been in the spotlight.
Immigration enforcement has been Trump’s central issue since he first ran for president in 2015. Upon returning to office last year, he unleashed a mass deportation effort that has included National Guard deployments in Democrat-controlled states and cities, leading to clashes with local leaders.
That confrontational approach is reaching new heights in Minnesota, where the Trump administration has also seized on the fraud investigation.
Vance recently announced a new assistant attorney general position focused on fraud nationwide.
Democrats have dominated statewide politics in Minnesota in recent years, but Trump lost by just four points in 2024 and just 1.5 points in 2016. Republicans running this year have seized on the fraud issue, including in the governor’s race and the race for an open U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Democratic Sen. Tina Smith.
At the same time, the immigration debate has injected another politically explosive issue into a state where the GOP is hoping to gain ground.
Conant noted that if Republicans can make Minnesota more competitive it could have big implications “not just for balance of power next year but making Minnesota a true purple state going forward would be very problematic for Democrats.”
Contributing: Josh Meyer, Cybele Mayes-Osterman
