Trump ramps up threats against Minnesota protestors and mulls invoking centuries-old Insurrection Act

US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump has threatened to invoke a centuries-old emergency law to deploy the military domestically, as protests continue to roil Minnesota following the fatal shooting of a woman by a federal immigration agent last week.

Tensions escalated further overnight after another man was shot and wounded by a federal agent in Minneapolis, sparking fresh demonstrations in the Democratic stronghold.

Posting on his Truth Social platform on Thursday, Trump warned that he could invoke the Insurrection Act if Minnesota officials failed to “stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists” targeting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.

“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law… I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT and quickly put an end to the travesty,” Trump wrote.

The threat marks Trump’s most explicit escalation since protests erupted after the death of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good, who was shot dead by an ICE officer on 7 January.

Her killing prompted days of demonstrations and a surge in federal law enforcement activity across the city.

Another shooting late on Wednesday night saw an ICE agent fire his weapon during a struggle with a man he was attempting to arrest, Minneapolis police chief Brian O’Hara said.

The man, identified by the Department of Homeland Security as a Venezuelan national, was shot in the leg and taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Federal officials said two other people were arrested after allegedly attacking the agent with a snow shovel and a broom handle during the incident.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem declined to say whether she believed Trump should invoke the Insurrection Act, telling reporters that it was the president’s decision.

“He certainly has the constitutional authority to utilize that,” Noem said, adding: “I don’t know” if he would do so.

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Minnesota Governor Tim Walz urged Trump to “turn the temperature down”, calling on protesters to demonstrate peacefully and warning against “fanning the flames of chaos”.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has indicated the state is preparing for a potential legal battle if the federal government attempts to deploy the military without consent.

Meanwhile, a federal court decision is expected imminently on whether to restrict ICE’s crowd-control tactics during the protests, after a judge expressed concern about agents drawing weapons and arresting demonstrators who had not crossed police perimeters.

What is the Insurrection Act?

The Insurrection Act is a US federal law that allows a president to deploy the military domestically to enforce civilian law, including conducting arrests and searches.

It acts as an exception to the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act, which generally bars the use of the US military for domestic law enforcement. Under the Insurrection Act, a president may use armed forces to suppress “armed rebellion” or “domestic violence” if state authorities are deemed unable or unwilling to do so.

The law dates back to 1792, with its current form enacted in 1807. It has been invoked around 30 times in US history, but rarely in recent decades.

It was most recently used in 1992, when President George H.W. Bush deployed troops to Los Angeles at the request of California’s governor during riots following the acquittal of police officers involved in the beating of Rodney King.

Previous uses include President Lyndon Johnson’s deployment of troops after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr in 1968, and earlier invocations by George Washington and Abraham Lincoln during periods of rebellion and civil war.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to invoke the Act in response to protests linked to immigration enforcement in Democratic-led states, including California, Illinois and Oregon, but has not yet done so.

Separately, Trump has relied on a lesser-known provision known as Title 10 to federalise the National Guard, though that authority does not permit troops to carry out routine law enforcement duties.

A recent Supreme Court ruling blocked his attempt to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago, dealing a rare legal setback to the administration.

As protests continue in Minneapolis, Democratic lawmakers and activists have warned that invoking the Insurrection Act would represent a dangerous escalation, while the White House has so far stopped short of confirming whether Trump intends to follow through on his threat.

With reporting from AFP

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