Minnesota Is Just the Beginning. California and New York Are 'Next'

"The Trump administration appears to be deploying the same playbook it used in Minnesota-leveraging allegations of fraud to justify significant federal oversight -in other blue states across the country, starting with California and New York. "POTUS loves Minnesota and the people. It's a state where he received historic Republican support, and he has long called out [Governor Tim] Walz for his incompetence and terrible leadership," a senior White House official tells WIRED. "The fraud is so blatant and widespread that it's a good place to start but it's only the beginning. CA and NY next.""

"This approach seemingly signals a broader strategy to use investigations into alleged fraud as a pretext for federal operations in blue states across the country, potentially exposing tens of millions of Americans to heightened federal scrutiny and unchecked ICE activity while exacerbating tensions between the White House and Democratic governors. Responding to protests over this surge in Minneapolis, Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act Thursday morning."

"The White House declined to comment, referring WIRED to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). A DHS spokesperson did not address the possibility of increased ICE presence in either California or New York as a result of alleged fraud investigations when reached for comment. "This is [sic] largest DHS operation in history-we won't get into resources or numbers of personnel," the spokesperson told WIRED on Tuesday."

The Trump administration appears to be expanding a Minnesota-style approach to justify federal oversight in other Democratic-leaning states, beginning with California and New York. Investigations framed as responses to alleged fraud are being used as a pretext for broader federal operations that could subject tens of millions of Americans to increased federal scrutiny and unchecked ICE activity. The Minneapolis surge prompted threats to invoke the Insurrection Act. The White House directed inquiries to DHS and ICE; DHS called the effort the largest operation in its history while declining to disclose resources. Since late December, DHS has deployed thousands of immigration agents to Minnesota in response to fraud claims tied to a viral YouTube video by a 23-year-old creator alleging purported large-scale fraud.

Read at WIRED