As the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s immigration enforcement stirs up the Twin Cities, ideological fault lines are appearing between the metro and greater Minnesota.
More from Greater Minnesota
Natural gas pipeline explosion rocks east-central Minnesota town
No injuries were reported but more than 600 Minnesota Energy Resources customers were without heat.
January 17, 2026
ICE agents eat at small-town Mexican restaurant — then detain workers
“Would your mama be proud of you right now?” a bystander said as agents returned at closing time to nab the workers.
January 16, 2026
Man allegedly driving again without license when he hit, killed woman crossing Minnesota road
The woman was crossing the road toward her mailbox, according to the criminal complaint.
January 16, 2026
Tolkkinen: Who did ICE take from a Perham company? The agency wouldn’t tell me.
In greater Minnesota, conservatives are mum about federal secrecy. 
AuthoredKaren Tolkkinen
AuthoredKaren TolkkinenJanuary 16, 2026
Willmar bird flu laboratory gets reprieve from USDA funding hit
The diagnostic center in Willmar learned it got the exemption its supporters were seeking.
January 15, 2026
With bear encounters declining in the BWCAW, officials extend food storage order
U.S. Forest Service said run-ins have dropped “sharply” from an average of 58 per year.
January 15, 2026
New effort to open mining near BWCAW could undermine protections outside Minnesota
A novel use of the Congressional Review Act by Rep. Pete Stauber could remove a hurdle for Twin Metals while emboldening opponents of other similar bans.
January 15, 2026
![Rising above the treeline (Top of this photo), on the shore of Birch Lake, the Twin Metals Copper Nickel Mine Plant site and Tailings Management site is part of the proposed plan. ] In theory, the copper-nickel mine Twin Metals wants to build in the headwaters of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is a zero-discharge mine -- a closed loop that will endlessly recycle millions of gallons of water, including rainwater and the polluted process water it uses to extract ore and](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/YHBTRGPTHTAE2QDYTS6YZ24OS4.jpg?&w=252&ar=3:2&fit=crop)
Federal judge sides with Minnesota, lets SNAP benefits continue
Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office sued federal officials in December, alleging the federal government’s demands for Minnesota to verify residents’ SNAP eligibility were “impossible.”
January 15, 2026
With ICE surge spreading across state, rumors and anxiety grow in greater Minnesota
Reports of federal agents conducting arrests has some residents on edge in cities and rural communities.
January 14, 2026
Raucous Mankato meeting briefly halted by ICE protesters
The incident laid bare anxieties about ICE and federal operations in Minnesota’s cities.
January 13, 2026
Grayson, Ely’s beloved 9-year-old ‘ambassador’ wolf, has died
The stark white arctic wolf at the International Wolf Center was still in good health. The cause of death is unknown.
January 13, 2026
Officials identify toddler mauled to death by dog in enclosure outside Minnesota home
The Sheriff’s Office said the boy’s grandmother, Kristen Brown, was seriously injured trying to save him.
January 13, 2026
