STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
What comes after most federal agents leave Minnesota? The White House border czar says they're departing, and that leaves the question of who pays for the damage. Entirely aside from people without legal status who were detained, the government seized American citizens, disrupted businesses, triggered weeks of street protests and killed two Americans, events that most of the country watched on video. We hear Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar in a moment after these facts.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Reporter Estelle Timar-Wilcox of Minnesota Public Radio joins us now with more. Good morning, Estelle.
ESTELLE TIMAR-WILCOX, BYLINE: Good morning.
FADEL: So why did Tom Homan say this surge is ending in Minnesota?
TIMAR-WILCOX: Well, Homan pretty much said, mission accomplished. He said DHS agents have arrested more than 4,000 people. And he said cooperation from local elected officials and police has improved, including, Homan said, more access to undocumented inmates held at county jails here.
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TOM HOMAN: We have obtained an unprecedented level of coordination with law enforcement officials that is focused on promoting public safety across the entire state.
TIMAR-WILCOX: Homan said he's now confident that ICE can work more closely with local and state law enforcement, though he didn't point to any specific changes in policy or practices in the state.
FADEL: So is that true? Have state and local leaders said they've changed anything when it comes to coordination with the federal government?
TIMAR-WILCOX: Well, the officials we've heard from say they've had productive talks with Homan, but several county sheriffs say they didn't change any enforcement policies. So we're yet to see if county jails really do start giving ICE that increased access, as Homan mentioned. Governor Tim Walz said the state isn't changing its policies either. He called on residents to remain vigilant in the coming days as immigration officers leave. And he called this crackdown, quote, "an unconstitutional assault on our state," one that's negatively impacted nearly every sector of life in the Twin Cities.
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TIM WALZ: They left us with deep damage, generational trauma. They left us with economic ruin in some cases. They left us with many unanswered questions. Where are our children? Where and what is the process of the investigations into those that were responsible for the deaths of Renee and Alex?
TIMAR-WILCOX: Walz and other officials have repeatedly pressed for state investigators to join federal agents in their investigations into the killings of Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti. So far, they've been kept away.
FADEL: So Walz mentions the damages this operation has caused for Minnesotans. What are Minnesotans and community organizers saying about all this?
TIMAR-WILCOX: This surge operation has caused a lot of fear among immigrants, but also among citizens, who are worried about aggression from ICE. And particularly nonwhite citizens, who've been carrying their passports around just in case they're stopped on the streets. And advocates say that's a fear that's not just going to go away. Ann Hill is the director of a community organization that's been delivering groceries to families who are struggling and still afraid to go out. Hill says she expects that need to continue.
ANN HILL: It's hard to know how this is really going to unwind. Are families really going to trust that ICE is gone after all the lies that have come out of the government?
TIMAR-WILCOX: And while people stay home from work, lots of families have been relying on donations to pay rent. Organizers say that will continue, too. Governor Walz says he's asking the federal government and state legislature for emergency funding for recovery. On the state level, he said he'll propose a $10 million emergency fund for small businesses.
FADEL: That's reporter Estelle Timar-Wilcox of Minnesota Public Radio reporting from Minneapolis. Thank you so much, Estelle.
TIMAR-WILCOX: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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