Wolf Labels Minnesota Leaders ‘Unserious’ in Disinformation Campaign Over National Guard Deployment

Former acting Homeland Security secretary Chad Wolf, now chairman for homeland security and immigration at the America First Policy Institute, has sharply criticized Minnesota’s leadership following a federal law enforcement agent who shot and killed a man in Minneapolis on Saturday.

Wolf stated that while President Donald Trump possesses “a legal basis” to invoke the Insurrection Act amid recent unrest, his decision would be “ultimately political.”

Trump had recently accused Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey of inciting insurrection through their anti-ICE rhetoric, potentially setting the stage for federal action.

Wolf noted that Walz activated the National Guard in response to protests tied to the shooting. He questioned the deployment, saying he has heard it is being used to protect local police facilities rather than federal law enforcement or ICE agents on the ground.

“We need to watch the deployment of these National Guard by the governor,” Wolf said. “It’s something that needs to be watched to see exactly what’s going on there and to ensure that you’ve got ICE officers continuously to be protected.”

The former DHS official also labeled Walz and Frey as “unserious individuals,” accusing them of embarking on a campaign of disinformation. Wolf further criticized Walz for publicly claiming the Department of Homeland Security is not a law enforcement agency, stating that it is “the largest law enforcement agency in the country” with over 70,000 officers.

When asked about local police constraints, Wolf added: “I think they’re in a very difficult situation. They want to do the right thing. They want to help federal law enforcement. They can’t because of the mayor and the governor’s policies.”

Wolf emphasized inconsistent messaging from city and state officials as tensions rose after the incident: “Well, which is it? Are they peacefully protesting, or is it getting so violent that you have to give up the intersection where this unfortunate incident happened?”

He concluded by stating that leadership at both the mayor and governor’s level has lost control of their city: “I think what it tells you is that the leadership… there is no leadership.”