More ICE Surges Possible as Minn. Drawdown Begins, Homan Says

Tom Homan, the White House border czar, said he is leaving open the possibility of federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement deployments in other sanctuary cities even as the administration winds down its enforcement surge in Minnesota.

 He told CBS' "Face the Nation" that sending agents elsewhere "depends on the situation" and argued that "we need to flood the zone in sanctuary cities with additional agents" if local conditions warrant it.

Homan's remarks came as the Trump administration begins drawing down Operation Metro Surge in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area after more than two months of heightened federal enforcement, legal clashes, and sustained protests that intensified following the fatal shootings of two individuals, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, during confrontations with federal immigration officers.

At a Minneapolis press conference announcing the end of the surge, Homan said he and President Donald Trump agreed the operation should "conclude" because cooperation with local officials had improved and enforcement objectives had been met, but he made clear the withdrawal would be gradual and that a "small force" of federal officers would remain temporarily to protect agents and respond if protesters or what he called "agitators" confront personnel.

"We'll get back to the original footprint," Homan said, adding that the residual contingent would stay "for a short period of time … to make sure the coordination, the agreements we have with local and state law enforcement stay in place."

Homan confirmed during his CBS interview that more than 1,000 agents have already left Minnesota and that hundreds more are expected to depart in the coming days, but he declined to specify how many officers would remain, saying only that the continuing presence would be sufficient to ensure officer safety and maintain operational stability.

The surge, which at its peak placed roughly 3,000 federal officers in Minnesota, became one of the most controversial immigration enforcement efforts of Trump's second term after the January shootings sparked large demonstrations across Minneapolis and St. Paul and drew national scrutiny of federal tactics.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz criticized the operation's impact and expressed skepticism about the administration's broader intentions, saying the deployment inflicted "deep damage, generational trauma, economic ruin" and warning that talk of sending agents to other cities risks repeating the turmoil seen in the Twin Cities.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey welcomed the drawdown but urged accountability, saying the city must work to "restore trust and stability" after months of disruption and emphasizing that Minneapolis will continue to support immigrant communities even as federal policy shifts.

Civil liberties advocates also responded directly to Homan's suggestion of potential future deployments, with the American Civil Liberties Union pointing to polling it conducted with YouGov showing that 53% of voters view recent ICE actions unfavorably and 55% support ending mass ICE raids, arguing that public sentiment cuts against expanding aggressive enforcement into additional sanctuary jurisdictions.

Homan defended the broader strategy in his CBS interview, saying the Minnesota effort "yielded the successful results we came here for" and reiterating that federal immigration law will be enforced regardless of local sanctuary policies.

With the bulk of agents leaving Minnesota but a smaller federal contingent still in place, Homan underscored that additional deployments remain possible, saying that if federal officials "need to surge resources into another sanctuary city, we will," signaling that the administration's immigration crackdown remains active and that other cities could face similar federal surges depending on conditions on the ground.

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