GREGG JARRETT: Chaos in Minnesota puts Trump’s Insurrection Act authority in play
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If President Donald Trump decides to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy the military to Minneapolis to stop violence against ICE, the state’s elected leaders will have only themselves to blame.
Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey deliberately sparked unrest on the heels of the tragic shooting of a motorist during a confrontation with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last week.
Without waiting for the facts to come out, Frey called the self-defense claim “bullshit” and shouted for ICE to get the hell out of Minneapolis.” As the demonstrations turned into mayhem and violence, Frey blamed federal agents. That’s like blaming a bank for luring the robber.
PROTESTERS CLASH WITH FEDERAL OFFICIALS AFTER A NEW ICE SHOOTING IN MINNEAPOLIS
Not to be outdone, Walz poured high-octane gasoline on the fire.
The governor, who previously accused ICE of being “a modern-day Gestapo,” accused ICE of imagined “brutality” and “organized brutality” while praising the protesters. “Nazis!” It was like music to the ears of the activists who shouted: and “fascists!” on the agents’ faces.
Ardent words tend to ignite fires.
So, as the crowds grew angry, uglier clashes inevitably broke out in the streets. An American flag was burned. Rioters and organized groups harassed and obstructed ICE. Some used their SUVs to block the agents. Others conspired to “arrest” the suspects. Never mind that interfering with the enforcement of federal law is a crime.
Events escalated following a second shooting in which a federal officer who was trying to make a legitimate arrest was ambushed and beaten. Agitators threw rocks, bottles and fireworks at ICE officers. Federal vehicles were destroyed and looted.
One of the destroyed cars had graffiti that read “Hang Kristi Noem” Secretary of Homeland Security. The angry mob also spray-painted the words: “The only good agent is a dead one.”
As mayhem reigned, local police did little or nothing to stop the chaos. This should come as no surprise in this notoriously sanctuary city, where the illusory rights and privileges of illegal immigrants trump the rights of law-abiding citizens.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Blanche warned: “The Minnesota insurrection is the direct result of a failed governor and a terrible mayor encouraging violence against law enforcement. It’s disgusting.” Blanche’s use of the word “riot” was both accurate and intentional.
It is generally defined as a violent uprising or rebellion against government authority.
As violence escalated, President Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act if Minnesota leaders refused to protect federal officers and ensure public safety. He has the legal right and authority to do so.
That means flooding the city with military forces rather than federalizing the National Guard, as he has done elsewhere to quell civil unrest resulting from enforcement of immigration laws.
As I explained in the previous two columns, The Insurrection Act has been used numerous times in American history by previous presidents. In 1957, President Dwight Eisenhower sent U.S. troops to Little Rock, Arkansas, to enforce federal civil rights laws in the face of a hostile governor and mob violence.
President John F. Kennedy did the same thing in both Mississippi and Alabama. President George H.W. Bush sent troops to Los Angeles in 1992 to contain riots where local authorities failed or refused. In all, fifteen Presidents have invoked the Insurrection Act, dating back to Thomas Jefferson.
Uninformed critics incorrectly claim that Trump is barred from acting under the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits the use of federal troops to police domestic territory. This is a pointless argument because the Insurrection Act is a well-established exception to the Posse Comitatus.
In the recent legal turmoil over National Guard troops, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh emphasized that “the president’s long-asserted Article II authority is the authority to use the U.S. military (as distinct from the National Guard) to protect federal personnel and property and thereby ensure enforcement of federal law.”
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That’s exactly what Trump will be doing in Minneapolis: enforcing immigration and deportation laws while protecting ICE agents and their federal property from ongoing violence. But he also has the authority to suppress general insurrection, as Bush did.
When the law will come into force and whether it will be implemented is within the exclusive authority of the president. But that doesn’t mean it’s the most prudent or wise decision to do so. The Wall Street Journal advised against it in an editorial on Friday.
The Journal suggests that “events in Minnesota so far are nowhere near the standards of riot and destruction that would justify such a move.” Moreover, calling in federal troops “could provoke more protests.” Ultimately, it is an election year that reveals its own calculations.
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These are fair points and are certainly part of President Trump’s deliberations.
It can be tempting to have the power to take action. But wisdom is also found in restraint.
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