Senior Trump adviser Stephen Miller has ignited a fresh controversy by claiming that local and state police in Minneapolis have been deliberately ordered to "stand down and surrender" during ongoing protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Claims of a Police Stand-Down Denied
Miller, a key architect of former President Donald Trump's immigration policy, made the incendiary statement on social media this Monday. "Only federal officers are upholding the law. Local and state police have been ordered to stand down and surrender," he wrote.
These assertions were swiftly contradicted by the Minneapolis Police Department. A spokesperson, Sergeant Garrett Parten, told The Daily Mail that "those claims are untrue" and confirmed that no such order had been issued to officers.
The claims follow commentary from New York Post columnist Miranda Devine, who suggested local police had "gone AWOL" after Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey described his city as being "under siege" from ICE agents.
Protests Escalate Following Fatal Shooting
The volatile situation stems from the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Minneapolis mother Renee Good by an ICE agent earlier this month. Miller has been a staunch defender of the agency in the wake of the incident.
Tensions reached a new peak the day before Miller's comments, when a left-wing protest group stormed a Sunday service at the Cities Church in St. Paul. Demonstrators, demanding "ICE out," interrupted worship and accused a church leader of collaborating with the federal agency.
Protest leader Nekima Levy Armstrong stated they were "demanding justice for Renee Good" and declared, "This will not stand, they cannot pretend to be a house of God, while harboring someone who is commanding ICE agents to terrorize our communities."
Federal Investigations and Political Fallout
The church incident has triggered a significant federal response. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon announced the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division will investigate the protesters under the FACE Act, which prohibits the use of force or threats at religious institutions.
Former Trump Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt tweeted that President Trump "will not tolerate the intimidation and harassment of Christians" and confirmed a full DOJ investigation is underway.
Independent journalist Don Lemon, who was present with the protesters, may also face scrutiny. Dhillon warned Lemon his "antics" could land him in legal trouble, stating he is "on notice."
Meanwhile, Miller has framed the Minnesota protests as an "insurgency against the federal government" and vowed to pursue charges against both rioters and any government officials abetting them. He has also reiterated a pledge to oversee what he calls the "largest deportation operation in American history," targeting an estimated 11 million undocumented migrants.
