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NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe talks with Alex Plechash, chair of the Minnesota GOP, about the federal presence in his state.
AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
The state of Minnesota has sought to stop President Trump’s ongoing immigration crackdown there. But yesterday, a federal judge ruled that it may continue for now. Operation Metro Surge has sparked outrage and protest in Minnesota and across the country, especially after federal agents killed two U.S. citizens last month – Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti. Minnesota is a largely blue state with a Democratic governor and two Democratic senators. They’ve been vocal in their opposition to the immigration operation. But Republicans in Minnesota are hoping to make gains in November’s elections. Alex Plechash is chair of Minnesota’s Republican Party and has been active in the state’s politics for more than two decades. He joins me now. Good morning.
ALEX PLECHASH: Good morning, Ayesha. Thank you for having me.
RASCOE: So let’s begin with your assessment of Operation Metro Surge. How do you see it?
PLECHASH: Well, it’s certainly something different for the state, and I think that’s why a lot of people were pushing back on it. It is quite unusual from anything we’ve done before. But the state has really fallen down on its own immigration policies, and so it’s not surprising that the feds will come in and do what they needed to do. They may have gone too far. There’s a lot of pushback on that. But they’re actually doing what they need to do.
RASCOE: Well, do you feel like they’ve gone too far? Do you have concerns – any concerns about the operation?
PLECHASH: Oh, I think I do. I mean, I’ve gotten a lot of feedback from people – my own constituents, basically – that go everything from, it’s about time that the feds came in to do what the state wouldn’t do, to some people feeling like the feds have gone a little too far in certain cases. And that’s what we’re seeing. A lot of the focus has been on the cases where maybe they’ve gone too far, but I tell people, let’s wait for all the facts to roll out. Right now what you’re seeing, I think, is years of inaction under President Biden and our previous, you know, leaders here, combined with sanctuary-style policies in cities. We’re seeing the real consequences of that.
RASCOE: Well, I mean, at this point, you had – U.S. Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino was overseeing the operation, which involves about 3,000 federal agents in Minnesota. President Trump recently sidelined Bovino, brought in Tom Homan, the White House’s border czar, to take over. Are you confident in Homan’s ability to maybe de-escalate some of those tensions and concerns here?
PLECHASH: Oh, I do have great confidence in Tom Homan. He held a press conference here in Minneapolis just a few days ago, and he highlighted the hard work of the administration to remove the worst of the worst criminals from our communities. We’re already beginning to see some vestige of cooperation from our local officials, and some of the rhetoric is toning down a bit. So I have very good confidence in him.
RASCOE: But you talked about how you have heard concerns from some of your constituents because – I mean, I know that your hope is to turn Minnesota into a red state. But are you confident that you’ll be able to make those gains in November with the backlash to Operation Metro Surge?
PLECHASH: Well, certainly, I have concerns. It would be naive of me to not consider that. But I think that what’s happening here with ICE is a reaction to certain things. And it will dissipate, whether it’s a week or a month, but it’s certainly going to dissipate between now and the election. Then we can refocus our dialogue on the things that Minnesotans really care about, and that’s the cost of living. It’s the fraud – the, you know, unbelievable amount of fraud that has been uncovered here in Minnesota. We were pounding that drum before the feds came in for enforcement of immigration. We will continue to pound that drum when that topic goes away. And it’s – that’s the kind of thing that Minnesotans really care about.
RASCOE: So you feel like the immigration issue will go away – that people will not be thinking about this in November?
PLECHASH: Oh, I wouldn’t be so naive as to say it’ll go away. They’ll certainly be thinking about it, but it’ll become somewhat past history. And, you know, the feds are really doing what they need to do, and the enforcement actions they’re doing are legal. And the thing is, a lot of the chaos that we’ve been seeing is brought on by all the protests. I mean, they’re getting in the face of the feds in every possible way, and yet they’re just doing their jobs. So I think that’s actually going to dissipate a bit, but fraud is going to stay with us.
RASCOE: Just very quickly – I mean, but do you have any concerns about American citizens who are being pulled over who say that they are being profiled? Do you feel like that’s appropriately doing the job?
PLECHASH: No, I don’t, frankly. If that’s what’s occurring, then I think the – that needs to be investigated and needs to be brought to light. That’s not what our country’s all about. I don’t think that’s what the feds’ aim is. They may have made some mistakes along the way. I don’t know. Let’s wait and see when the facts come out. But if that, in fact, is happening, sure, I have a concern about it.
RASCOE: That’s Alex Plechash. He’s the chair of the Republican Party in Minnesota. Thank you so much.
PLECHASH: You’re welcome. Thanks for having me
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