President Trump described what he said was a “very good call” with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) in which they “seemed to be on a similar wavelength,” amid growing tensions between federal law enforcement and protesters in the state.
“Governor Tim Walz called me with the request to work together with respect to Minnesota. It was a very good call, and we, actually, seemed to be on a similar wavelength,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“I told Governor Walz that I would have Tom Homan call him, and that what we are looking for are any and all Criminals that they have in their possession. The Governor, very respectfully, understood that, and I will be speaking to him in the near future,” he continued, reiterating a request made on the social media platform a day before.
The message from Trump is a significant shift after days of administration officials repeatedly blaming Walz for protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
It also comes as tensions have reached a breaking point in Minnesota following the release of a video on Saturday that showed a Customs and Border Protection agent shooting demonstrator Alex Pretti in the back after an altercation in which Pretti, filming the officers, sought to help a woman being pepper-sprayed before he was also pepper-sprayed.
As a result, a chorus of criticism has emerged from Democrats and Republicans over the administration’s initial handling of the killing, including how the White House’s account contradicts multiple videos of the circumstances.
State officials, including Walz, have suggested for several days that they were not allowed to assess or investigate the situation by being shut out by federal agents.
Trump noted Walz was happy the president was sending Homan to the state later Monday.
“He was happy that Tom Homan was going to Minnesota, and so am I! We have had such tremendous SUCCESS in Washington, D.C., Memphis, Tennessee, and New Orleans, Louisiana, and virtually every other place that we have ‘touched’ and, even in Minnesota, Crime is way down, but both Governor Walz and I want to make it better!” he wrote.
Saturday’s shooting of Pretti came weeks after Renee Good, an unarmed woman, was shot by an ICE officer in Minneapolis.
Walz and Trump have sparred in recent weeks over the presence of ICE officers in the state.
“You’re allowed to decide at any point that you’re not with this anymore. If you voted for this administration — Heck, even if you thought Operation Metro Surge was a good idea, sounded like the thing to do a month ago — you’re still allowed to look at what’s happening here in Minnesota and say, ‘This isn’t what I voted for and this isn’t what I want,’” Walz said at a press conference on Sunday, addressing Trump’s supporters.
