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By Aliss Higham
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About 1,500 active-duty U.S. soldiers have been placed on standby for a potential deployment to Minnesota, media has reported.
According to a report by The Washington Post, the Pentagon issued prepare-to-deploy orders to the troops this week, citing defense officials in President Donald Trump's administration.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told Newsweek: "The Department of War is always prepared to execute the orders of the commander-in-chief if called upon.”
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Why It Matters
Tensions have been especially high in Minneapolis, the state’s largest city, following the fatal shooting of Renée Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent on January 7. Her death has sparked demonstrations against what critics say is an aggressive and authoritarian deportation campaign, while federal officials have framed the protests as a threat to law enforcement.
What To Know
The troops come from two infantry battalions within the Army’s 11th Airborne Division, a unit stationed in Alaska, according to The Washington Post.
Minnesota has been a focal point for the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration agenda since December, when the Department of Homeland Security launched Operation Metro Surge, which has resulted in the arrests of hundreds. Demonstrations against the action have intensified after ICE agents shot two people this month: killing Good, an American citizen, and wounding Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan migrant who was shot during an attempted detention.
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Trump has also raised the possibility of invoking the Insurrection Act, a rarely used federal law that allows a president to deploy military forces within the U.S. to respond to domestic unrest. He warned last week that he would take such action if Minnesota officials fail to curb protests that, according to the administration, have put federal immigration agents at risk.
Trump posted on social media this week that unless Minnesota authorities stop protesters from “attacking” ICE agents, he would “institute the INSURRECTION ACT."
The Insurrection Act, enacted in 1807, grants the president authority to federalize a state’s National Guard or deploy active-duty troops domestically. The last time a president invoked it was in 1992, when President George H.W. Bush sent federal troops to Los Angeles during riots that erupted after the acquittal of police officers involved in the beating of Rodney King.
The current standoff has also deepened political tensions between the White House and Minnesota’s leadership. The Trump administration has increased pressure on Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both Democrats, accusing them of obstructing federal immigration enforcement. The Justice Department has gone so far as to launch an investigation into whether Walz and Frey have impeded ICE operations.
Both have pushed back against those claims. Walz, Frey and other Democrats have said the federal response to protests is authoritarian, while urging demonstrators to keep protests peaceful. On Saturday, Walz announced that he had mobilized the Minnesota National Guard to support local authorities if needed, though he has not yet deployed Guard troops to the streets.
State officials have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, arguing that the increased federal law enforcement presence is politically motivated and violates the Constitution.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Thursday: "If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT."
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, writing on X on January 15: "I know you’re angry. I’m angry. What Donald Trump wants is violence in the streets. But Minnesota will remain an island of decency, of justice, of community, and of peace. Don’t give him what he wants."
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said as part of the announcement of the lawsuit filed against the federal government: “The unlawful deployment of thousands of armed, masked, and poorly trained federal agents is hurting Minnesota. People are being racially profiled, harassed, terrorized, and assaulted. Schools have gone into lockdown. Businesses have been forced to close. Minnesota police are spending countless hours dealing with the chaos ICE is causing. This federal invasion of the Twin Cities has to stop, so today I am suing DHS [Department of Homeland Security] to bring it to an end.”
What Happens Next
There has not yet been any official confirmation over whether the troops will be deployed to Minnesota.
Update 01/19/26, 7:00 a.m. ET: This article has been updated to include a statement from the Pentagon.
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