Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson blamed Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison for the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Macklin Good by federal immigration agents during the recent immigration enforcement action in Minnesota.

The comments came in a heated exchange Thursday at a U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing.

“I, as a government official, would have said, ‘Back off. Let us work with ICE, let’s cooperate with them, let’s see if we can’t de-escalate this,’” Johnson said. “But Attorney General (Ellison), you did the exact opposite, and two people are dead because you encouraged them to put themselves into harm’s way.”

Johnson castigated Ellison for what Johnson called a “smirk.”

“Everything you said was untrue,” Ellison said in response. “It was a nice theatrical performance, but it was all lies.” 

“You disgust me,” Johnson replied.

Johnson has accused Democrats of encouraging residents to interfere with federal immigration actions in Minnesota. During Thursday’s hearing, Ellison also took exception to Johnson’s claims that he encouraged people to “put themselves into harm’s way” to impede federal immigration agents in Minnesota.

Ellison said that “never happened.”

“We at all times said if you want to protest, protest peacefully, protest safely,” Ellison said.

Brian Evans, a spokesperson for the Office of the Minnesota Attorney General, wrote in an email that Ellison has “always and only encouraged Minnesotans to peacefully protest, lawfully document the activities of DHS (Department of Homeland Security) agents, and take care of their neighbors who are suffering due to Operation Metro Surge. “

“Any claims to the contrary are simply untrue,” Evans wrote in the email.

The hearing came as Trump administration border czar Tom Homan announced the administration will end its enforcement action in Minneapolis-St. Paul.

Milwaukee officials seek to address local concerns

Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Common Council is introducing local legislation to prepare for any potential escalation of federal immigration enforcement in the community in the future. 

The legislative package, which the council has titled “ICE Out Milwaukee,” was discussed by alders and immigrant rights advocates during a press conference Wednesday.

One proposal would seek to require all law enforcement officers interacting with residents in the city to be unmasked and to display identification. Another would prohibit ICE agents from staging on city property.

“We can’t wait until we’re under siege,” Milwaukee Common Council President Jose Perez said at the press conference.

Milwaukee Alder JoCasta Zamarripa said the council is “taking preemptive action today to protect Milwaukeeans from ICE.” 

Alder Marina Dimitrijevic also discussed the creation of a new city office to welcome immigrants and other newcomers to Milwaukee. She said it would be a place to offer them resources like workforce training and information on schools and hospitals.

The introduction of the city legislation comes as Milwaukee County has already passed a measure to prohibit federal immigration enforcement agents from staging in county parks without prior authorization. That ordinance was passed by the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors last week.

Milwaukee’s goal to unmask federal law enforcement agents comes days after a judge blocked a California law that sought to require federal agents to remove their masks during operations, according to a Politico report.

“We do not believe that any secret police should have any covering at any time, that their identification should be always out in public as a form of authority,” Dimitrijevic said. “That is what we’re trying to change here.” 

A spokesperson for the Milwaukee Police Department said officers with the department are “not allowed to conceal their identity by policy.”

In a statement, Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin called the proposed legislation “legally illiterate.”

“Enforcing federal immigration laws is a clear federal responsibility under Article I, Article II and the Supremacy Clause,” McLaughlin wrote in the statement.

Regarding masks, McLaughlin said officers wear them to “protect themselves from being doxxed and targeted by known and suspected terrorist sympathizers.”

Milwaukee Police Association President Alexander Ayala said he’d also like to see more details of the proposed legislation. In an interview with WPR, he said there’s a “slew” of federal agencies the Milwaukee Police Department already assists, including the FBI and the DEA.

If officers with the Milwaukee Police Department were to respond to a large protest or respond to a call for backup from federal immigration agents, Ayala said officers would “set order.”

“We’re there obviously to protect the citizens, but we’re not there to arrest ICE agents,” Ayala said. “We have a duty to help out federal agents.”

• Republican lawmakers are reintroducing a bill to train road salt applicators on salting practices that also protect water quality.
• The bill would shield applicators who have been trained from liability in slip-and-fall lawsuits, a point of contention for Democrats and Gov. Tony Evers.
• Wisconsin’s freshwater is getting saltier, which affects the environment, infrastructure and human health.
• The bill has a short time to make it to the governor’s desk before the Assembly and Senate wrap up their session.

Wisconsin lawmakers are reintroducing a bill that would shield road salt applicators from slip-and-fall lawsuits if they are trained on salting practices that also safeguard water quality.

Gov. Tony Evers vetoed the bill in 2024 after Democrats pulled their support for it, saying the liability shield it created was too broad. Republican Sen. André Jacque of De Pere, who authored the legislation, said the risk that road salt poses to Wisconsin’s fresh water is too serious not to try again.

Salt is a cheap and easy way to melt ice. But in excess, it gets swept into rivers, streams and lakes – and also pollutes drinking water. Chloride, one component of road salt, harms aquatic life and corrodes pipes. Sodium, the other component, has become so prevalent in Wisconsin’s public wells that more than one-third of the wells tested for sodium in the last decade were above the recommended limit for people on low-salt diets.

Sodium and chloride in water can come from a variety of sources, including water softener salt. In colder states, road salt is typically a dominant source.

One coffee mug’s worth of salt is enough to de-ice 10 sidewalk squares. But many people lay down much more with good intentions of preventing others from slipping. On private properties, where as much as half of salting occurs, road salt applicators say they lay down more salt than is necessary because they fear they or the property owner will get sued.

“Once you get salt in [water], it doesn’t really leave easily,” Jacque said. “Unless we start to do things a little bit differently, it’s going to continue to move in that direction.”

More: On a low-salt diet? New data shows water from Wisconsin public wells could be a problem

Bill would grant legal immunity to commercial salt applicators

Like the earlier version, the bill would require the state’s Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection to create a program to train commercial salt applicators in snow and ice removal methods that would also protect water quality.

Sweeping up excess salt, calibrating equipment so it doesn’t dump large piles of salt and brining – where salt is mixed with water before being applied to roads – are all methods that can help applicators use less salt, according to Allison Madison, program manager for the salt pollution awareness coalition Wisconsin Salt Wise.

Commercial applicators who voluntarily complete the training, pass an exam and become registered with the department would not be held liable for damages caused by snow and ice provided they used the de-icing methods they were trained on. That protection also applies to the owner of the property that contracted with the applicator.

Many states have programs that help road salt applicators learn safer salting practices. But only one, New Hampshire, includes the limited liability aspect. That law passed in 2013.

Liability shield remains a sticking point for trial lawyers

Wisconsin Democrats who supported the original bill, including Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein of Middleton and Sen. Mark Spreitzer of Beloit, backed away after an amendment that strengthened its liability shields. Hesselbein’s office said at the time that the change made the legislation “less about salt reduction and the environment and instead [enacted] more unnecessary liability shields.”

The Wisconsin Association for Justice, an association of trial lawyers, was the only organization to register against the bill and spent nearly 290 hours lobbying on the matter between 2023 and 2024, state lobbying records show.

In a Feb. 4 memo seeking cosponsorship of the reintroduced bill, Jacque and Assembly cosponsor Rep. Elijah Behnke, R-Crivitz, said it incorporates changes “following negotiations with the Wisconsin Association of Justice.”

The new version of the bill requires that salt applicators show proof that they’ve completed the training and are currently registered in the program to claim immunity from liability, Jacque said. It’s meant to assuage trial lawyers’ concerns that anyone could falsely claim they’d completed the training and be shielded from liability.

However, in a Feb. 5 letter, Jim Rogers, government affairs director for the Wisconsin Association for Justice, said his organization has not spoken to Jacque or his staff in nearly a year.

“WAJ does not support this bill nor were we given the opportunity to evaluate its language before it was circulated with the false claims about our position,” Rogers wrote.

The bill’s path forward

Spreitzer declined to comment and Hesselbein’s office did not respond to a request for comment on whether they would support the reintroduced bill.

Madison of Wisconsin Salt Wise said she was surprised the bill was being introduced now.

More: Wisconsin waters have a road salt problem. Here’s what to know, and how to help.

“I’m always happy to see this issue be discussed,” she said, but added that its path forward seems challenging.

Her organization is still making headway. Last year, Wisconsin Salt Wise trained more than 900 people from municipalities and commercial snow and ice removal companies on safe salting methods, according to its annual report.

Madeline Heim covers health and the environment for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Contact her at 920-996-7266 or mheim@gannett.com.