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Minnesota sues federal government to try to end deployment of immigration agents

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Minnesota sues federal government to try to end deployment of immigration agents


Officials in Minnesota are suing the federal government in an attempt to stop the deployment of thousands of immigration agents to Minnesota, the state’s top prosecutor said Monday.

“We allege that the obvious targeting of Minnesota for our diversity, for our democracy and our differences of opinion with the federal government is a violation of the Constitution and of federal law,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said at a news conference.

Calling the deployment a federal “invasion of the Twin Cities,” he said: “This has to stop.”

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota, includes the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul as plaintiffs and names officials with the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection as defendants.

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In a statement, Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin accused Ellison of “prioritizing politics over public safety” and said he and other “sanctuary politicians” were the reason the department had to surge immigration agents to the state.

“President Trump’s job is to protect the American people and enforce the law — no matter who your mayor, governor, or state attorney general is,” she said.

“This pathetic stunt only proves that Democrats will put illegal criminals over hardworking Americans every time,” a White House spokeswoman said in a separate statement.

Speaking at Monday’s news conference, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey cited the number of police officers in his city — 600 — and called the deployment of thousands of federal immigration officers “wildly disproportionate.”

“At times, there are as many as 50 agents arresting one person,” he said, adding: “We’re feeling the impact here in Minneapolis. Schools have closed. People are afraid to go to work, shop or seek medical care. 911 calls are up. Police resources are indeed stretched thin.”

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St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, whose family fled Laos for the United States when she was 3, told reporters that she’s carrying her passport and ID with her at all times.

“I don’t know when I’m going to be detained,” she said.

The complaint was filed one day after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that hundreds more federal officers are heading to the state amid protests over the killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent.

Noem said that the federal operation in the state is now focused not just on targeting alleged violations of immigration law but on tackling ICE-related protests.

Noem has described Good, a prize-winning poet, as a terrorist who “weaponized” her vehicle against the ICE officer who fatally shot her in self-defense. Local and state officials have disputed that claim, saying that Good, 37, was only trying to leave the scene and calling federal officials’ characterization “propaganda.”

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Good was in the driver’s seat of an SUV in a residential part of Minneapolis on Jan. 7 when she was killed. Video obtained by NBC News that appears to have been recorded by Jonathan Ross, the officer who shot Good, captured Good and her wife talking to the officer in the moments before he opened fire.

Video from eyewitnesses shows officers telling Good to get out of her car before she begins driving away. Multiple gunshots can be heard and the SUV slams into a parked vehicle.

Officials in Minnesota have criticized federal authorities for barring the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension from participating in the investigation examining Good’s death. Asked about the move last week, Noem accused state investigators of allowing people to harass and incite violence against federal officers.

The Trump administration began ramping up immigration-related arrests in Minnesota in December, after conservative commentators focused on a years-old scandal in which federal prosecutors uncovered a sprawling fraud scheme in the Somali community.

Last week, more than 2,000 officers and agents from ICE and Homeland Security Investigations were deployed to the city after a right wing influencer accused several Somali-run day cares of fraud. The allegations were investigated by state officials who said they found no evidence to back up the claims.

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Illinois also sued the Trump administration Monday, alleging in a federal lawsuit that immigration agents deployed in the city are using “unlawful and dangerous tactics.”

“We have watched in horror as unchecked federal agents have aggressively assaulted and terrorized our communities and neighborhoods in Illinois, undermining Constitutional rights and threatening public safety,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement.

In a statement, a White House spokeswoman said the suit “reads like a far left manifesto” that seeks to “smear law enforcement officers and incite violence against them. Democrat politicians must stop siding with criminal illegal aliens over American law enforcement.”



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Minnesota man accused in a $250M fraud scheme taken into custody in Somalia | CNN

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Minnesota man accused in a 0M fraud scheme taken into custody in Somalia | CNN



AP — 

Authorities say a Minnesota man charged with helping to orchestrate a $250 million fraud scheme has been taken into custody in Somalia.

Abdikerm Abdelahi Eidleh, 42, of Burnsville, Minnesota, was taken into custody Thursday in Mogadishu, U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen said in a news release. Court documents do not show if Eidleh has obtained an attorney, and he has not yet had an opportunity to enter a plea in the case.

Eidleh is one of dozens of people who were indicted in 2022 in connection with what prosecutors said was a massive scheme to defraud a federal meals program.

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According to court documents, Eidleh was an employee of Feeding Our Future, an organization that claimed it helped provide millions of meals to children in need during the pandemic under a federal child nutrition program. But prosecutors say just a small portion of the federal money went toward feeding kids, with the rest laundered through shell companies and spent on property, luxury cars and travel.

Eidleh is accused of creating fake child nutrition program sites, falsely claiming they were feeding thousands of children a day and creating shell companies that purported to be meal vendors at the sites. The indictment charges him with 31 counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery, federal programs bribery, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering.

Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Department of Justice’s National Fraud Enforcement Division said Eidleh was a central figure in “one of the largest fraud schemes in Minnesota history.”

“He not only stole taxpayer dollars, but he also robbed vulnerable children of critical resources they desperately needed. Rather than answer for his crimes in the United States, he fled to Somalia in a futile attempt to evade justice,” McDonald said.

President Donald Trump pointed to the fraud case as part of his justification for launching a massive immigration crackdown in Minnesota late last year.

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Minnesota primary voting starts for major 2026 races

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Minnesota primary voting starts for major 2026 races


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  • Early voting for Minnesota’s 2026 primary elections began on Friday, 46 days ahead of the official Aug. 11 election.
  • Voters will decide on nominees for governor, an open U.S. Senate seat, and all state legislative positions.
  • Minnesotans can vote absentee by mail or in person at designated early voting locations.

Voting in Minnesota’s 2026 primary elections began Friday morning, 46 days before the official Aug. 11 Primary Election Day. 

Minnesotans confront a hugely important midterm election in the fall, when all constitutional offices, an open U.S. Senate seat, a highly competitive congressional district and the Legislature will be on the ballot. Control of both state government and Congress are at stake. 

Before then, however, the parties will choose their nominees in a bevy of competitive races that will shape the fall election. 

We don’t have party registration in Minnesota, which means anyone can vote in the primary.  

Following the sweep of a progressive slate in several New York primaries this week, political analysts will be closely watching voters’ preferences, which will set the stage for the second half of President Donald Trump’s second term. 

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Here’s what you need to know.

Which races are on the ballot in Minnesota?

Every Minnesota citizen will have the opportunity to vote for statewide offices including governor and lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, auditor and U.S. Senator.

For this primary election, you can only vote for candidates from one political party. Your ballot will have Democrats on one column, and Republicans on the other. Choose one! If you vote for candidates from more than one political party, your votes will not count. You decide when you vote which one of the parties you will vote for. 

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The governor’s race is wide open for the first time since 2018, when Gov. Tim Walz won his first term. Walz initially announced he would run for a third term before ending his campaign in early January following Republican attacks on his record on stopping fraud in Minnesota’s social safety net programs. 

The Senate seat is open following Sen. Tina Smith’s retirement announcement last year. Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who is running for governor, still occupies the other Senate seat. (If Klobuchar were to win the governor’s race and resign her Senate seat, she would appoint a successor to hold the position until a special election.)

The entire state Legislature is up for reelection in 2026, but not every race has a competitive primary. 

Voters may see other local races on their ballots, including county commissioners, county attorneys and school board members. 

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You can use this tool from the Secretary of State’s Office to preview your ballot. 

How do I vote in Minnesota?

Friday, June 26, is the first day of absentee voting. You can request an absentee ballot be mailed to you, which you can return in-person or through the mail. 

Alternatively, you can vote “in person absentee” by going to your local early voting location, where you can request your absentee ballot, receive it, fill it out and submit it on the spot. 

Starting July 24, you can vote in-person at the early voting locations in a process similar to that of voting on Election Day. 

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Who’s running in Minnesota?

There are several competitive primaries in statewide races that will determine the matchups in the general election later this year. 

For governor, Sen. Amy Klobuchar is expected to win the Democratic-Farmer-Labor nomination after winning the party’s endorsement on the first ballot, over a challenge from Kobey Lane, a 26-year old trans activist and former Republican legislative assistant. 

The Republican primary is competitive; after Army veteran and former health care executive Kendall Qualls won the party’s endorsement in May, the other front-runners refused to drop out of the race, citing voting irregularities at the convention. House Speaker Lisa Demuth and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell round out the three-way race.

In the race to replace Smith in the Senate, two Democratic powerhouses are facing off: U.S. Rep. Angie Craig and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. Flanagan won the endorsement after Craig dropped out of the endorsement process; Craig is gunning for votes outside of the party’s activist base.  

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On the Republican side, GOP-endorsed former Navy Seal Adam Schwarze will face off against former sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya, whose name recognition and well-financed campaign could boost her performance in a primary.

With Craig’s highly competitive south metro seat in the U.S. House coming open, three top-tier Democrats are vying to replace her: former state Sen. Matt Little, state Rep. Kaela Berg and state Sen. Matt Klein. State Sen. Eric Pratt is running unopposed for the Republican nomination.

Minnesota Reformer is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.



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Children’s Minnesota doctor warns of Benadryl challenge dangers

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Children’s Minnesota doctor warns of Benadryl challenge dangers



A dangerous social media trend is circulating online, and Minnesota health experts are warning parents it involves allergy medication. 

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Doctors say the so-called Benadryl challenge involves teens taking large amounts of the medication and record themselves as the effects kick in.

“Our goal here at Children’s Minnesota is if a trend causes any sort of physical harm or mental harm to make sure that we’re taking care of our patients,” said Dr. Nita Gupta, a pediatric emergency medicine physician at Children’s Minnesota.

According to the Minnesota Department of Health, the trend first gained attention in 2020 when there were 184 reported cases tied to intentional misuse of the allergy medication. Cases continued to rise the years but dipped in 2024 and then more than doubled in 2025, reaching nearly 400 cases. Most of the cases involved teens ages 15 to 19. 

Dr. Gupta believes the main draw is the hallucinogen aspect of it, but says there are so many other negative consequences that can happen. 

Health experts say the allergy medication can become dangerous when taken in large doses. Symptoms can escalate quickly and may include agitation, blurred vision, seizures and in severe cases, death. 

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“The second the parent knows that their child consumed this is a reason to come in or at least call poison control, don’t even wait for the symptoms to start,” Dr. Gupta said. 

Experts say the resurgence of this dangerous challenge shows how quickly trends can return, and they urge parents to talk to their children about what they are seeing online. 

Dr. Gupta believes early conversations at home may help prevent serious injury. 

The Minnesota Regional Poison Center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for anyone with questions. The organization’s phone number is 1-800-222-1222.

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