White House blames Democrats for ICE violence as Minneapolis erupts, Insurrection Act threat looms

By Fox News · Fox News

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Democrats are to blame as threats against federal immigration law enforcement officers intensify in Minneapolis. "The Democrat Party has demeaned these individuals," Leavitt said Thursday of federal immigration officers. "They've even referred to them as ‘Nazis’ and as ‘the Gestapo.’ And that is absolutely leading to the violence we're seeing in the streets." "If you look at some of the images out of Minneapolis last night, look at this vehicle, look at what it says," Leavitt added. "It says, ‘F ICE.’ You have these individuals who are putting their middle finger, proudly so, at the camera, another ICE individual, a vehicle that was vandalized last night by these left wing agitators. These people don't do this without encouragement from people in power who make them feel like it's okay." TOP HOUSE GOP LEADER DEMANDS TIM WALZ RESIGN AS MINNEAPOLIS ERUPTS OVER ICE SHOOTING Leavitt added that the media's reporting of the chaos in Minneapolis has added to the violence. Chaos broke out in Minneapolis Wednesday evening into Thursday morning as agitators clashed with law enforcement officials following the second ICE-involved shooting in the city. Law enforcement officers converged on the city earlier in January as a massive fraud scandal came to light. The city became a powder keg Jan. 7 when a protester, Renee Good, was shot and killed by an officer after authorities say she attempted to use her vehicle as a weapon against the ICE official. On Wednesday, an ICE agent landed in the hospital after being ambushed during an attempted arrest of a Venezuelan national, authorities reported. The agent fired his gun, hitting one Venezuelan suspect, who is reported to be stable and in law enforcement custody. President Donald Trump has railed against the violence, pinning blame on Democrats for encouraging the chaos and threatening on Thursday morning to invoke the Insurrection Act. MINNESOTA DEM COMPARES ICE OPERATIONS TO 19…