DHS to Withdraw 700 Immigration Agents from Minnesota

Border czar Tom Homan cites 'unprecedented cooperation' with local law enforcement as reason for pullback.

Feb. 5, 2026 at 12:15pm

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The Trump administration will immediately pull 700 federal immigration and law enforcement personnel out of Minnesota, reducing the federal footprint in the state by about 25%. Border czar Tom Homan cited 'unprecedented cooperation' between federal authorities and local and county law enforcement as the reason for the drawdown.

Why it matters

The deployment of over 3,000 federal agents in Minnesota as part of Operation Metro Surge sparked widespread protests and intensified scrutiny after two U.S. citizens were fatally shot by federal agents during separate incidents in January. The partial pullback aims to ease tensions, but immigration enforcement will continue statewide.

The details

Roughly 2,000 federal agents will remain in Minnesota, most of them based in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Homan said the drawdown allows 'more officers taking custody of criminal aliens directly from the jails, means less officers on the street doing criminal operations.' He stressed that the reduction does not signal a retreat from immigration enforcement or the administration's broader deportation agenda.

  • The Trump administration will immediately pull 700 federal immigration and law enforcement personnel out of Minnesota.
  • Operation Metro Surge brought more than 3,000 agents into the Twin Cities area at its peak in December.

The players

Tom Homan

White House border czar who announced the drawdown of federal immigration agents from Minnesota.

Renee Nicole Good

A U.S. citizen fatally shot by federal agents during separate incidents in January.

Alex Pretti

A U.S. citizen fatally shot by federal agents during separate incidents in January.

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What they’re saying

“More officers taking custody of criminal aliens directly from the jails, means less officers on the street doing criminal operations. This is smart law enforcement, not less law enforcement.”

— Tom Homan, White House border czar (bigtalkerradio.com)

“You're not going to stop ICE. You're not going to stop Border Patrol. The only thing you're doing is irritating your community that want to go get groceries or pick your children up or whatever.”

— Tom Homan, White House border czar (bigtalkerradio.com)

What’s next

A full withdrawal would depend on continued cooperation from state and local authorities, as well as a decline in violence, threats, and attacks against federal officers.

The takeaway

The partial pullback of federal immigration agents from Minnesota aims to ease tensions, but immigration enforcement will continue statewide. The administration is sending mixed signals, with the president initially calling for de-escalation but later referring to a fatal shooting victim as an 'agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist.'