Tangle - The DHS shakeups in Minnesota.

Episode Date: January 29, 2026

On Monday, President Donald Trump announced that border czar Tom Homan would go to Minnesota to oversee immigration enforcement efforts. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino, who had previously spearheaded the operations, reportedly left Minnesota on Tuesday along with an unspecified number of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents; Bovino returned to his previous post in California. Separately, two Customs and Border Patrol agents who fired guns in the Saturday shooting death of 37-year-old U.S. citizen Alex Pretti were placed on leave; Bovino had previously shared that the agents had been reassigned to another state but were still working. The moves follow widespread, bipartisan scrutiny of DHS over Pretti’s death and the earlier shooting death of 37-year-old U.S. citizen Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer.Ad-free podcasts are here!To listen to this podcast ad-free, and to enjoy our subscriber only premium content, go to ReadTangle.com to sign up!You can read today's podcast⁠ ⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠, our “Under the Radar” story ⁠here and today’s “Have a nice day” story ⁠here⁠.You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Take the survey: Do you think DHS should adjust its methods? Let us know. Our Executive Editor and Founder is Isaac Saul. Our Executive Producer is Jon Lall.This podcast was written by: Isaac Saul and audio edited and mixed by Dewey Thomas. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75.Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Senior Editor Will Kaback, Lindsey Knuth, Bailey Saul, and Audrey Moorehead. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From executive producer Isaac Saul, this is Tangle. Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening, and welcome to the Tangle podcast, a place we get views from across the political spectrum, some independent thinking, and a little bit of my take. I'm your host, Isaac Saul, and it is Thursday, January 29th. Today we are talking about the de-escalation in Minnesota, the shake-up of the immigration enforcement. I'm not exactly sure what to call it, but it's a developing situation and it's real. We're going to break down exactly what's going on, share some views from the left and the right, and then get into my take.

Before you get started, a quick heads up, that this week, the rapper and cultural icon, formerly known as Kanye West, now known as Ye, took out a full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal, apologizing for his past anti-Semitic remarks and blaming some of his actions on manic bipolar episodes. Tomorrow, I'm going to write about that apology. I'm going to write about how I view it and what the response to Yey's apology tells us about American cultural values. That's going to be a paid member-only post, so keep an eye out for it. And don't forget to subscribe if you want to unlock it. All right, I'm going to send over to John for today's main show, and I'll be back for my take.

Thanks, Isaac, and welcome, everybody. Here are your quick hits for today. First up, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 10 to 2 to keep interest rates unchanged at 3.5% to 3.75%. The committee said U.S. economic growth has been solid and the unemployment rate has shown some signs of stabilization. Two, Trump appointed Federal Reserve governors dissented and supported a quarter point rate cut. Number two, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents searched an election center in Fulton County, Georgia as part of an investigation into the 2020 election. The agents warrant authorized them to search for all physical ballots from the 2020 general election and other election-related materials. Number three, President Donald Trump said that the USS Abraham Lincoln and its strike group are deploying to the Middle East in preparation for a potential attack on Iran.

The president called on Iran to negotiate with the United States over a deal on its nuclear weapons program. Number four, Secretary of State Marco Rubio testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, telling lawmakers that the U.S. does not intend to take further military action in Venezuela, but that it reserved the right to in response to an imminent threat. And number five, Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar announced her candidacy for Minnesota governor. We have Tom Holman there now. We put him in there. He's great. And they met with the governor, the mayor, everybody else, and we're going to de-escalate a little bit. But I will tell you, you look at the numbers, they're doing better than they've done in many years

because we took thousands of criminals out of Minnesota. On Monday, President Donald Trump announced that borders are Tom Homan would go to Minnesota to oversee immigration enforcement efforts. Border Control Commander Gregory Bovino, who had previously spearheaded the operations, reportedly left Minnesota on Tuesday, along with an unspecified number of Department of Homeland Security agents. Bovino returned to his previous post in California. Separately, two customs and Border Patrol agents who fired guns in the Saturday shooting death of 37-year-old U.S. citizen Alex Predi were placed on leave. Vivino previously shared that the agents had been reassigned to another state, but we're still

working. The moves follow widespread bipartisan scrutiny of DHS over Preddy's death and the earlier shooting death of 37-year-old U.S. citizen Renee Good by an immigration and customs enforcement officer. We covered the death of Renee Good and the death of Alex Prady. You can check out our coverage with links in today's episode description. Also on Monday, President Trump announced that he had a very good call with Minnesota Governor Tim Walls, saying that the two were on a similar wavelength regarding the path forward for immigration operations in the state and that Walls had agreed to comply with federal immigration enforcement.

Walls' office told Fox News that the call with Trump was productive, adding that the governor had emphasized Minnesota was already in compliance with federal forces. Later in the day, Trump said that he had a similarly productive call with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frye, who said that he appreciated the conversation and was clear that my main ask is that Operation Metro's, surge needs to end. In a Tuesday interview with Fox News, Trump called the shooting deaths of good and pretty terrible and said that he planned to de-escalate a little bit in Minnesota. Trump stressed that this was not a pullback in enforcement efforts in the state and has since criticized Mayor Fry's

comments that Minneapolis will not enforce federal immigration law, saying Fry was playing with fire. In a Thursday morning press conference in Minneapolis, Homan said the government would draw down the number of DHS agents in Minnesota and that the administration would prioritize criminal aliens, public safety threats and national security threats. On Wednesday, a new video surfaced of an altercation Alex Prattie had with DHS agents 11 days prior to his death, in which he appears to spit at an officer before kicking out the taillight on their vehicle. Pretty is wrestled to the ground by the agents but then let go.

President Trump shared the video on Truth Social on Wednesday night, but has not commented directly on the development. Additionally, several prominent lawmakers have called for Christy Noem to be removed as DHS Secretary, including Republican senators Tom Tillis from North Carolina and Lisa Murkowski from Alaska. Other GOP lawmakers publicly called on the Trump administration to Obeney thorough investigation into Preddy's death and asked the administration to reconsider its deportation methods. The political pressure is weakening support for an appropriations package that includes funding for DHS and ICE. A vote on the funding package is scheduled for Thursday, and federal funding will

lapse if the bill is not passed by Friday. Senate Democrats have threatened to withhold a unless Senate Republicans add several DHS reforms and strip DHS funding. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, the Republican from South Dakota, said, right now the conversation should be between the White House and Democrats. Today, we'll go over what the right and the left are saying about the recent shakeups and the DHS funding bill. And then Isaac's take. We'll be right back after this quick break.

All right. First of, let's start with what the right is saying. Many on the right support an impartial investigation into DHS's actions in Minnesota and the tactics of activists. Some say President Trump was smart to put home in in charge of operations. Others argue the deportation effort must continue despite protester resistance. The Washington Examiner editorial board called for an investigation into the Minnesota shootings. Senate Democrats are coalescing around a number of proposals, including a demand that the Department of Homeland Security cooperate with state investigations of the deaths, considering Minnesota's complete inability to police massive welfare fraud in its own jurisdiction,

the refusal of state law enforcement agencies to cooperate with immigration agencies, and the obvious bias of the state's top law enforcement official, such a state-led investigation is an obvious non-starter, the board wrote. People across the country, not just in Minnesota, nevertheless, deserve a full account of what happened. Did Good and Pretty encounter them randomly while they were going about their daily routine and then suddenly decide to intervene? Of course not. Were they rather part of larger groups that have been tracking, following, and actively interfering with federal law enforcement? What are the goals of these groups? What are their tactics? The board said. Unfortunately, President Donald Trump's Justice Department does not have the credibility to conduct an investigation of the shootings on its own.

An independent party could be appointed within the Justice Department to lead the investigations, a person approved by Democratic and Republican senators. In the Hill, Robbie Soev wrote, Send in Tom Homan. Behind the scenes, there's tremendous frustration among immigration enforcement officers and other Republican officials with the job that Homeland Security Secretary Kristianom is doing. Under her leadership, immigration enforcement has focused on areas where there is maximum noncompliance from local democratic authorities, so I've wrote.

You can argue that these are necessary fights that the administration is picking, but Homan prefers to actually accomplish the job of deporting large numbers of criminal illegal aliens. The administration has a short window to restore confidence in their operations, which they must do. The American people voted for Trump to carry out deportations of illegal immigrants who are gang members and fraudsters and a net drain on communities, so I've wrote. They did not vote for and will not tolerate a permanent new police state where American citizens are killed with impunity,

and the administration turns around and lies about the circumstances of those killings. In Fox News, Mike Davis said, Surrender is not an option for ICE's Minnesota mission. After days of Democratic spurred riots, President Trump and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz had a phone call on Monday. Trump described it as very good, and Walls expressed a desire to work together.

This detente may be short-lived, as leftist agitators have now turned on Walls and directed their protests to his office. Regardless, ICE's withdrawal for Minneapolis would be a disaster and cannot occur, Davis wrote. Immigration is squarely under the federal domain. Indeed, over a decade ago, the Obama Justice Department successfully sued Arizona for attempting to independently enforce federal immigration law. Now, ICE is in Minneapolis pursuant to this core power. Ice is not the problem in Minneapolis.

Leftist violence is. Florida and Texas each have far more people and illegals than does Minnesota. We do not hear about the tumult in those states for one reason. Stellar state leadership, Davis said. Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis respect the Constitution, including ICE's law enforcement authority. These governors do not use Holocaust references, and they do not tell the good men and women of federal law enforcement to get out of their cities, in sharp contrast to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Fry.

All right, that is it for what the right is saying, which brings us to what the left is saying. Many on the left argue that President Trump's immigration tactics are to blame for rising tensions in Minnesota. Some say that the reforms that Democrats are seeking are important, but only one step toward lasting change. Others call for accountability for federal agents involved in the shootings. In the Wall Street Journal, Minnesota Governor Tim Walls criticized the un-American assault

on Minnesota. Everyone wants to see our immigration laws enforced. That isn't what's happening in Minnesota. In recent weeks, masked agents have abducted children. They have separated children from their parents. They have racially profiled off-duty police officers. They have aggressively pulled people over and demanded to see their papers. They've broken into homes of elderly citizens without warrants to drag them outside in freezing temperatures,

Waltz said. That isn't effective law enforcement. It isn't following the rule of law. It's chaos. It's illegal and it's un-American. I've repeatedly appealed to President Trump to lower the temperature, but he refuses. I fear that his hope for the tension between ice agents and the communities they're ransacking to boil over, that he wants to see more chaos on your TV screens, protests turn into riots, and more people get hurt, Waltz wrote.

The assault on our communities is not necessary to enforce our immigration laws. We don't have to choose between open borders and whatever the hell this is. Mr. Trump can and must end this unlawful, violent, and chaotic campaign, and we can and must rebuild an immigration enforcement system that is secure, accountable, and humane. In MS Now, Hayes Brown argued it's time for Democrats to start dismantling ICE. The Trump administration is now on its back foot, and even Republican lawmakers have raised questions about whether Preddy really deserve to die, as though the first inklings of shame have finally begun creeping back into their bodies. The swiftly shifting political headwinds

have left Democratic lawmakers, who had seemed sure to be grudgingly fun DHS later this week, looking to press their advantage. Given the stakes and what is likely to be a brief window for action, there's little room for error or delay to prevent the rot within DHS from metastasizing further, Brown said. Nome herself is an understandable target, given her visibility and callousness, when confronted with evidence of DHS agent's culpability. An undue focus on Nome, though, would be an ironic shadow of the conservative ethos, looking to solve problems at the individual level, rather than taking on the system. As Republicans ignored as they targeted Nome's predecessor,

Biden administration DHS chief Alejandro Mayorkas, she is dutifully following orders coming from the president, Brown wrote. While two-thirds of the upper chamber voting to show Nome the door would make for a stunning political rebuke, it would be all too easy to confuse that shiny trophy as a true victory. The reforms pushed by Senator Chris Murphy and other Democrats are likewise important, but as Murphy himself recognized, still only scratched the surface of how we reached this point in the first place. In Bloomberg, Noah Feldman argued federal agents must face the rule of law. The law on the books is extremely clear that Minnesota prosecutors and law enforcement

have the authority to investigate and criminally charge immigration and customs enforcement agents who have not acted in a way that is necessary and proper to carry out their official duties. That certainty includes unjustified shootings. Legal immunity from state prosecution for federal officers arises only if they are found to have been carrying out their duties in that manner. The federal government and the Trump administration have no legal leg to stand on in attempting to impede the investigations. Courts should affirm that, Feldman said.

No criminal justice system catches every criminal, and no just criminal justice system convicts every criminal who is apprehended. There is room for error and resource limitations. What there is no room for is obvious impunity and lack of accountability. Impunity is worse when it's a government official who violates the law. The very definition of a police state is that the law applies to ordinary people, but not to the police, which in this context includes ICE. All right, let's head over to Isaac for his take. All right, that is it for the left and the right are saying which brings us to my take. The situation with DHS and Minnesota is actively evolving. It's changing by the minute.

So I'm recording this late Thursday morning on January 29th. I'm going to offer 10 thoughts about where things stand right now as I record this. Number one, Trump is reactive to public sentiment and polling. This is and will continue to be one of my favorite things about him as president. Enough public pressure can genuinely change his mind because he is not a particularly ideological person. Even now, on an issue he is perhaps most ideological about, he's adjusting his course after his enforcement efforts became a major political liability. It's a good characteristic of Trump's and a good development. Number two, I'm fascinated by how often Trump walks people out onto a limb

and then cuts it off. A few days ago, the president called the protests in Minnesota an insurrection and signaled he was ready to push back with the full force of the federal government. He's AIDS and allies in the media followed him out onto the limb, immediately defending the killing of Alex Prattie and positioning all opposition to immigration enforcement as akin to domestic terrorism. Then, Trump felt the issue turning against him and started distancing himself from people like Christy Noem who were trying to enforce his stated position. It really is remarkable how often that this happens. Number three, according to Reuters, ICE agents have now been directed not to interact with agitators and to only target immigrants who have criminal charges or convictions in

Minneapolis. This would be a major departure from their methods thus far and would also constitute a pivot toward Trump's previously stated goal to focus on the worst of the worst. But the truth is, a finite number of immigrants are here illegally who also have criminal records, and any deportation effort limited to that scope would need to be narrow and well-organized. I think it's an open question whether this DHS, under Christy Noam, is capable of that. Speaking of Noam, President Trump should fire her. One of Biden's great failings was that incompetence was really met with consequence,

most notably when the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal produced zero firings and no leadership shakeups, something Trump called attention to during his campaign. Noam leads an agency that has now killed two American citizens in three weeks in shootings that the public broadly views is horrific and unnecessary, and she has overseen and condoned systematic violations of the rights of thousands of other people and ignored dozens of court orders. She's being criticized harshly by Republicans in the Senate. Discontent with leadership is widespread among agents and DHS, and her inability to step before a microphone without lying has caused the president any political leverage he might have had on immigration enforcement. Yet, I believe he

probably won't fire her because he despises a lot of the people calling for it, and the negative polarization effect on Trump makes him averse to ever giving his opponents a perceived win. Number five, Trump and Republicans look to be playing ball with Democrats over DHS funding in the appropriations package due Friday. The new plan could include provisions that force DHS agents to remove their masks, wear body cameras, halt random sweeps and warrantless searches, and apply the same use of force policies that are applied to local and state law enforcement agencies. That last item is critical, as it would mean independent investigations for violent interactions. It's incredible to me that this isn't already the case, but I'll take it, and I hope Republicans

do too. If Democrats get this win, it would probably constitute the most notable successful act of resistance since Trump took office a second time. Number six, whatever happens in Congress, DHS must allow an independent investigation into both of the agent-involved shootings. To put it simply, we cannot live in a world where agents of the government kill American citizens without any accountability, especially when they're trying to conceal their own identities. Maybe their actions will be determined lawful. Maybe not. But there must be an investigation. Number seven, Politico published a fascinating piece this week about Minnesota's chief district judge, Patrick Schiltz, a veteran in conservative legal circles who was a mentor to Supreme Court Justice Amy Cody

Barrett and whose typically low-key demeanor has been supplanted by a fury at the Trump administration for violating nearly 100 court orders and laws. In what I believe is an unprecedented moment, Judge Schultz demanded the head of immigration and customs enforcement, Todd Lyons, appear before the court on Friday to explain his agency's quote, rampant violations of court orders. Schultz has since backed off the order for lines to appear, but reaffirmed his criticisms of the agency's conduct, saying, quote, ISIS likely violated more court orders in January 26 than some federal agencies have violated. in their entire existence. Again, this rebuke is coming from a Republican-appointed judge

with strong conservative bona fide, so it tells us a lot about how far the administration has overstepped. Number eight, immigration has been a swing issue in the U.S. for years, and in many ways, it's thermostatic. When the border seems out of control and stories about towns inundated with tens of thousands of migrants dominate the headlines, support for immigrant communities goes down. When the border is secure and massed ice agents are snatching people who have lived here peacefully for 20 years off the street, support for immigrant communities goes up. Most people interact positively with immigrant communities, legal and illegal on a daily basis, but want a sense of security in their country, towns, and homes. And most people want those who come here to follow the law.

A political force that could hold these sentiments at once could make a lot of progress on this issue, but both sides have trouble walking these lines. Number nine, the new Alex Predi video is being framed by some people as proof he was not a peaceful protester but a violent agitator. It obviously doesn't reflect well on him, but his actions in this video aren't particularly relevant to how agents treated him nearly two weeks later when he was far more docile. The video also doesn't justify shooting him. I'm most interested in how different it is from the video of his killing.

His behavior is worse. He appears to spit an agent. and then kicks their car's tail light, while the agent's behavior is much better. They wrestle him down, yes, but then, seeming to realize the situation is dangerous, let him off the ground. One or two agents even get between Preddy and the agency screaming at to de-escalate. It's like night and day. It's both proof that Preddy was more aggressive in other interactions with agents

and it's proof that the agents who killed him had many other options. Number 10. In Minneapolis, Trump's enforcement effort has brought scores of non-political people off the sidelines. Administration officials have framed the protesters as left-wing agitators, coordinated by some kind of deep-pocketed funders, but on-the-ground reporting suggests something different. A lot of normal Americans who have never even been to a protest before just hate what is happening in their towns. This is a seismic event in Minnesota that has major electoral implications across the country, where I suspect a lot of previously unengaged voters are now paying close attention to what is happening. I expect to see a similar reaction anywhere Trump directs his

enforcement efforts when they're like this, not because Trump is sending agents into radical leftist enclaves, but because Americans everywhere tend to resist obvious and dangerous government overreach. That's a logistical and political obstacle that I do not see the Trump administration conquering anytime soon. We'll be right back after this quick break. All right, folks, we're skipping today's reader question and heading straight to our under the radar story. On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed that officers from immigration and customs enforcement will accompany U.S. athletes at the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina, Italy in February. The announcement prompted backlash among Italian officials who are facing

public pressure to bar ice from entering the country. Antonio Tajani, Italy's foreign minister, said the agents would not be deployed in public, adding that Italian police would be responsible for public order during the Olympics. In a statement Tuesday, the State Department said that As in previous Olympic events, multiple federal agencies are supporting the diplomatic security service, including Homeland Security Investigations, ICE's investigative component. The New York Times has this story, and there's a link in today's episode description. And last but not least, our Have a Nice Day Story.

Hippolito and Liz says Neros were two of the many people whose lives were upended by the wildfires in the Los Angeles area in January 2025, losing their home in the blades. Among the possessions they lost was Liz's wedding ring. In the aftermath of the fire, Hippolito dug through the rubble of their home and was able to recover a part of the ring. Using that remnant, he had a new ring made, with three diamonds to represent each of their children,

and surprised Liz by reproposing. Now, they plan to renew their vows in the home they are building in Altadena, California. People has this story, and there's a link in today's episode description. All right, everybody, that is it for today's episode. As always, if you'd like to support our work, Please go to readtangle.com, where you can sign up for a newsletter membership, podcast membership, or a bundled membership that gets you a discount on both. In this week's Friday edition, Isaac is going to be taking a look at Kanye West's apology letter

that he took out a full-page ad-on in the Wall Street Journal, apologizing for his past anti-Semitic remarks and blaming some of his actions on manic bipolar episodes. Isaac's going to reflect on how he views it and what the response to Yeh tells us about American cultural values. A reminder that Friday editions are for paid members only. In order to unlock the Friday editions, you need to be a member. So head over to our subscription page to sign up. Isaac Ari and Camille will be here tomorrow with the suspension of the rules podcast, and I will return on Monday.

For Isaac and the rest of the crew, this is John Law, signing all. Have an absolutely fantastic weekend, y'all. Peace. Our executive editor and founder is me. Isaac Saul, and our executive producer is John Wall. Today's episode was edited and engineered by Dewey Thomas. Our editorial staff is led by managing editor Ari Weitzman with senior editor Will Kback and associate editors Audrey Moorhead, Lindsay Canuth, and Bailey Saul. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75.

To learn more about Tangle and to sign up for a membership, please visit our website at reetangle.com.