Federal Judge Denies Minnesota Request to Block ‘Operation Metro Surge’

Overview

• District Judge Katherine Menendez refused a preliminary injunction, leaving a deployment reported at roughly 3,000 federal immigration agents in place as the case moves forward.
• Plaintiffs argued the surge coerces local governments and diverts resources, but the judge said applying the anti-commandeering doctrine to an executive enforcement operation would be unprecedented.
• Relying on United States v. Texas, the order rejected resource-diversion theories and also found the equal-sovereignty claim did not meet the threshold for preliminary relief.
• Menendez acknowledged evidence of severe community harms, including fatal shootings and alleged profiling, but concluded these must be weighed against the federal interest in enforcing immigration law.
• Minnesota cited statements by Tom Homan and a letter from Attorney General Pam Bondi tying a drawdown to local cooperation; Bondi praised the ruling while Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey criticized it.