Border Czar Tom Homan held a press conference in Minneapolis pledging full cooperation with Minnesota leaders and local law enforcement. Minnesota Democrats now face a choice: Either cooperate and help ensure the nation’s laws are enforced or obstruct federal officers and own the consequences.
This article is a lightly edited transcript of the “Here’s the Point” podcast by Ryan Helfenbein, executive director of the Standing for Freedom Center.
Today, Border Czar Tom Homan stood before cameras in Minneapolis and delivered a clear message: ICE will continue enforcing the law, but they will do so in coordination with local authorities and the corrections system in Minnesota. He emphasized professional conduct, strict accountability, and cooperation with state officials who are now saying that thy are willing to work within the context of the law.
The mainstream media wasted no time trying to frame this as Trump retreating and claiming defeat under pressure. Since Trump took office as the 47th president last year, Democrats have been desperately trying to create a narrative that ICE is operating in a rogue fashion, that border and immigration enforcement is chaotic and that Trump is a tyrant, using ICE like his own personal Gestapo. But by public engaging directly with Minnesota officials and emphasizing lawful coordination, Trump has made it impossible for Democrats to maintain that narrative.
In fact, Trump has reframed the narrative, leaving Tim Walz and Jacob Frey little room to maneuver politically, as they will have little choice but to work with Tom Homan in their state.
Make no mistake: Border and immigration enforcement continues. The law remains the law. And the same statutes that have existed for the last six presidential administrations, both Democrat and Republican, are still being enforced today. What’s changed is Trump’s refusal to let the radical left control the narrative.
So how should we think about this? Four points.
First, the law is already being enforced, but this about winning the messaging war with normie Americans who aren’t paying close attention.
Most Americans are not glued to social media listening and paying attention carefully to political news. They are not taking a break from their reality of everyday life: going to work, paying taxes, raising kids, and watching regular television. They are the same people who overwhelming voted for Trump in the 2024 election in a popular victory. You can’t win elections without normal, everyday Americans.
But they are not following everyday ICE operation or reading the details of these stories. At the same time, the mainstream media has framed these stories by over 90 percent as negative news, going beyond any semblance of fair or balanced journalistic standards, and propagating misinformation and disinformation to shape and steer public opinion against ICE and the Trump administration. This is not unlike 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdowns and the BLM [Black Lives Matter] riots.
The political left is counting on emotional imagery and selective framing to turn public opinion against law enforcement in the performance of their duty.
Trump understands that without clear messaging, you will lose public opinion quickly. By emphasizing coordination, professionalism, and cooperation with Tom Homan in Minneapolis, he’s making it much harder for Democrats to paint ICE as lawless or out of control.
Normal Americans need to see that clearly in order to form a more accurate opinion of the situation on the ground.
Second, Trump is forcing Democrats to choose between lawful cooperation and open defiance or even insurrection.
Throughout this process, the Trump administration has been very patient with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey. They have used very incendiary and irresponsible rhetoric that has raised the public temperature and provoked greater protests on the streets. This no doubt has had impact on violence against ICE and ICE’s retaliatory response as law enforcement officers in self-defense, which has resulted in very deadly and tragic situations.
By offering to work with Minnesota officials, Trump has created a political trap. If state and local leaders cooperate, enforcement will continue smoothly, as it has in other states like Texas and Florida. And Trump wins in that scenario. If they refuse to cooperate, they’re openly defying federal law enforcement — and normal Americans will not stand by that.
Democrats in Minnesota now face a choice: work within the law and help ensure professional enforcement, or obstruct federal officers and own the consequences. Trump isn’t backing down: He’s making the position even more clear for the average American public viewer.
Third, this refocuses attention on the core issue: securing the border and removing criminal illegal aliens.
Under President Trump’s leadership, we have the most secure border in U.S. history. Even as Tom Homan has stated just hours ago in his press conference, fewer women are being assaulted or raped by an illegal alien. Fewer children are being trafficked. Less fentanyl is crossing the border. These facts matter to normal everyday American families.
And lest we forget, the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 was signed into law by Democrat President Bill Clinton. As an ICE agent, Tom Homan enforced it under Obama, Bush, and even Biden. And even today, Barack Obama still holds the record for most deportations as a U.S. president because he was doing it, Democrats supported him. The law has not changed. What’s changed is Democrats now prefer chaos, anarchy, and obstruction to actual enforcement.
Fourth, President Trump is now turning his attention to immigration and the economy ahead of the 2026 midterms.
This is the critical point to remember, but most Americans, including Democrats, Independents, and Republicans, that voted for Trump, did so expecting him to secure the border, remove criminal illegal aliens, and fix the economy for American families or even for Gen Z, who are finding themselves locked out of the American dream.
Trump won in 2024 because he addressed the issues Americans cared about the most. If he allows himself to get pulled into side debates or lets the left successfully change or reframe the issues most important to Americans, he will lose in the midterms. Immigration and the economy must remain the central focus.
The propaganda war in Minneapolis is real. Marxist agitators want to create enough chaos and confusion that the American people will lose their will to fight and even to beg the Trump administration to back down. The left wants ICE officers second-guessing every decision, and they want them to be afraid of being the next viral video.
They also want the Trump administration to lose political capital, run out of time, and to back down before the mid-terms.
As Christians we must affirm the rule of law, recognizing God’s purpose and plan for all nations, to affirm the dignity of every man and woman made in God’s image, and to not support lawlessness no matter where it is coming from.
If you disagree with immigration law, that is totally fine. We should vote for it in Congress, and Congress is the only one that can change it. For now, immigration is one of the central issues most Americans voted for and are concerned about. Attacking law enforcement in their work is like attacking the American people.
This mission isn’t over. Pray for President Trump, pray for Tom Homan, pray for Minnesota, and pray for law enforcement in their work. We must win on immigration — or we will no longer have a nation.
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