BREAKING: Walz Claims Minnesota Is ‘At War’ With U.S.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz escalated rhetoric Wednesday following the deadly Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in Minneapolis, suggesting the state is now effectively “at war” with the federal government as tensions explode between local officials and Washington.

Walz made the remarks in response to a question about the National Guard and federal authority, appearing to frame the confrontation over immigration enforcement as something far more severe than a policy dispute.

“Well, I said this yesterday, we’ve never been at war with our federal government,” Walz said. “I think in this case, the National Guard is their main mission. They have a dual mission.”

The comments came hours after a 37 year old woman was fatally shot by a federal immigration officer during a large scale enforcement operation in south Minneapolis. Federal officials say the officer acted in self defense. Local Democratic leaders strongly disagree.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE officers were conducting what the agency described as the largest immigration enforcement operation ever in the Minneapolis St. Paul metro area. More than 2,000 federal agents were reportedly deployed as part of the operation, which DHS said was aimed at targeted arrests.

WATCH:

Federal authorities claim the woman drove her SUV toward agents on the scene, forcing an ICE officer to open fire to protect himself and others. DHS and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem characterized the alleged act as an attempted attack and even used the term domestic terrorism in defending the officer’s actions.

Local officials immediately rejected that narrative.

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Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said video footage reviewed by the city does not support claims that the vehicle was aggressively charging officers. City leaders described the shooting as reckless and unjustified, arguing the SUV appeared to be moving slowly and may have been attempting to leave the area.

Frey publicly demanded that ICE withdraw from Minneapolis, calling the death a needless tragedy and accusing federal agents of operating without regard for public safety.

The woman has since been identified as Renee Nicole Good. Officials say she was a US citizen. Family members have disputed federal claims that she posed any threat, claiming that she was not violent and was not acting as a protest instigator. Some accounts describe Good as a legal observer in the community, though federal authorities have not confirmed that characterization.

BREAKING: New angle of the moment an ICE officer fired shots at a driver in Minneapolis.

The footage appears to show the agent being struck by the car before the shots were fired.

The woman, 37, is deceased.

The Department of Homeland Security says the officer was acting in… pic.twitter.com/ZESontgKnn

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) January 7, 2026

Footage circulating online shows multiple federal agents surrounding the woman’s SUV, with at least one officer firing multiple shots, including one through the vehicle’s window. The SUV later collided with parked cars before coming to a stop. The shooting immediately triggered protests near the scene and across Minneapolis. Hundreds gathered, chanting demands for ICE to leave the city. Some confrontations included snowballs thrown at law enforcement vehicles and reports of an American flag being burned in the street.

Democratic leaders across Minnesota condemned the shooting and the scale of the federal operation. Civil rights groups joined calls for accountability and transparency, while Walz accused federal authorities of creating chaos rather than ensuring safety.

Republicans and Trump administration officials have backed ICE, maintaining that the officer acted within the law and blaming local leaders for inflaming tensions by undermining federal law enforcement.

The incident is now under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. Investigators are reviewing body camera footage, bystander video, and witness statements to determine whether state or federal laws were violated.