Minnesota Momentum & Corporate Democrat Betrayal

Just 1 day in Minnesota has improved my outlook on hope for the future of this country--but we need Corporate Democrats to stop betraying us

I’ve been in Minnesota for just one day, protesting ICE alongside community members, faith leaders, parents, and neighbors. And already, two things are crystal clear. Lessons that we can take nationally to stop this fascism from expanding and advancing. But for that to happen, we need unity, and we need to end corporate Democrat complicity. Let’s Address This.

Let’s start with two things I’ve already learned in my short time in Minnesota today.

First: people are traumatized.

ICE is succeeding—deliberately—in striking fear into communities. Children are afraid to go to school. Black and brown families are afraid to leave their homes. Immigrants and low-income workers are living under constant threat. This is not incidental. It is the point. Fear is the tool. And that leads me to the second lesson I’ve learned.

Second: people are resilient.

Far from backing down, Minnesotans are organizing. They are building coalitions across race, faith, class, and immigration status. They are recognizing that unity is not optional in the face of fascism—it is essential. What I am witnessing here is not despair, but determination. ICE’s brutality has awakened actual patriots—people who love this country and believe it belongs to all who live here.

And that is precisely why this moment matters.

What ICE Has Done—Just This Month

Let’s be clear about what people here are responding to. In just the past few weeks, ICE has:

• Shot and killed Renee Good, denied her medical aid, and then attempted to smear her as a “domestic terrorist.”

• Used a five-year-old Minnesota boy as bait, then kidnapped him and transported him to Texas.

• Teargassed a car full of children, including a six-month-old baby.

• Continued on pace for one of the deadliest years on record for deaths in ICE custody.

• Acted with impunity an internal memo confirming agents are invading homes without judicial warrants.

No amount of “better training” fixes this. Training does not stop fascism. Ending fascism does. An agency that kidnaps children, kills civilians, and ignores constitutional limits cannot be reformed into something humane. That is why the demand is clear: Abolish ICE.

The Lie—and the Reality

Meanwhile, ICE continues to claim it is targeting “violent criminals.” That is false.

By ICE’s own data, more than 97% of the people it arrested, in Chicago for example, have zero criminal record. And we already know there are over 5,000 documented cases of ICE and Border Patrol sexually abusing migrant children. The pattern is unmistakable: children, mothers, working-class people—not threats—are the targets.

I share below the image of five-year-old Liam Ramos in this piece. Not because it is sensational, but because it is necessary. This is who ICE is harming. This is who corporate politicians are enabling. ICE kidnapped Liam, then transported him to Texas without telling his family, all to lure out his parents (who by the way are documented and have legal status in the United States). ICE’s continued targeting of Latino Americans is yet another example of their fascistic priorities.

ICE kidnapped 5 year old Liam Ramos

Corporate Dems Are Enabling MAGA and ICE Fascism

And while I spent the day freezing my fingers to the bone in -15 degree temperatures, I returned inside to see this enraging and indefensible capitulation from corporate Democrats. Seven corporate Democrats voted with MAGA Republicans to push through additional ICE funding. The vote passed 220-207. Meaning, if those seven had voted no, the funding would have failed 213-214. Instead, these 7 corporate Democrats helped unlock billions more for an agency that is already out of control.

Use the below script to call the above corporate Democrats who voted to fund ICE fascism.

These funds did not come from the sky. They came from gutting our healthcare, school lunches, public education, infrastructure, and clean energy. They were taken from working families and handed to a federal force that is operating like the gestapo.

And House Democratic leadership failed to stop it.

Hakeem Jeffries could not get his caucus in order—even as ICE arrests people without warrants, kidnaps children, and kills U.S. citizens. That is not a messaging failure. It is a leadership failure.

I spent the day freezing my extremities off protesting ICE in Minnesota. I returned to my hotel and saw this capitulation from corporate Democrats—and there is no other word for it. Unacceptable.

Above I share the names and office numbers of those 7 Democrats. Below I share a call script. Since these Corporate Dems choose to support a fascistic agency, they should hear directly from the people they claim to represent.

Hello, my name is [NAME], and I’m a constituent from [CITY/ZIP].

I’m calling because I’m furious that Representative [NAME] voted to fund ICE—an agency that is kidnapping children, arresting people without judicial warrants, and killing civilians. 2025 was one of the deadliest years on record for deaths in ICE custody, 2026 is already off to a deadlier start, and this vote expands that violence.

This was not a neutral vote. It was a choice to side with a lawless, abusive agency over basic constitutional rights and human dignity. I expect Representative [NAME] to immediately oppose any further ICE funding, publicly explain this vote, and commit to protecting due process—not enabling state violence. I will not forget this vote, and it has directly motivated me to vote them out of office.

Why Minnesota Matters—and What Comes Next

Trump is targeting Minnesota so aggressively for a reason—and it isn’t just his cruelty. It’s his strategy. What Minnesotans are building is dangerous to authoritarianism.

Minnesota organizers have developed a model of resistance—one rooted in community defense, rapid response, legal observation, interfaith solidarity, and mass participation. It is a model that can be deployed nationally. Trump (and his right hand sycophant Stephen Miller) understands this. If he can crush the American spirit here, he believes he can normalize this level of ICE violence everywhere.

And now, with an additional $28 billion that corporate Democrats helped unlock, he has the resources to try.

But what I am seeing on the ground tells a different story. People here are not breaking. They are building. They are proving that we are stronger as a nation when we stand united against fascism. And what’s more, I have significant news to report from Minnesota on Friday. What is happening here matters far beyond this state. So stay tuned for that piece dropping Friday morning.

Speak up. Hold corporate Democrats and MAGA Republicans accountable. Follow Minnesota’s lead. And if you find this work valuable—if you want reporting from the ground, legal analysis, and unfiltered truth—I invite you to support it. This work is made possible by readers who refuse to look away.

The movement for justice is growing. And ICE has badly miscalculated. United, we are stronger than ICE’s fascism. Let’s go out and prove it.