Pentagon Places 1,500 US Soldiers on Standby for Possible Minnesota Deployment

Two US defense officials said the Army issued prepare-to-deploy orders to two infantry battalions from the 11th Airborne Division, a unit based in Alaska and trained for operations in arctic conditions. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of military planning.

While it remains unclear whether the troops will ultimately be sent, one defense official said the units are on standby should President Donald Trump decide to invoke the Insurrection Act, a rarely used 1807 law that allows the deployment of active-duty military forces for domestic law enforcement.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell did not deny the existence of the orders, stating that the military “is always prepared to execute the orders of the Commander-in-Chief if called upon.”

Insurrection Act Threat Looms Over Immigration Protests

The move follows repeated threats by Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act amid protests against his administration’s immigration crackdown. On Thursday, Trump said he would use the law “if the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E.”

Trump appeared to soften his stance a day later, telling reporters at the White House that there was no reason to invoke the law “right now,” while adding, “If I needed it, I’d use it. It’s very powerful.”

Trump has made similar threats throughout both of his terms, including during the 2020 protests following the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

Protests Escalate After ICE Shooting

Tensions in Minnesota have risen sharply following a surge in Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity and the fatal shooting of Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, who was shot while sitting in her car by ICE officer Jonathan Ross on January 7.

Since then, confrontations between residents and federal officers have intensified in Minneapolis, where the Trump administration has already deployed about 3,000 ICE and US Border Patrol agents. Officials have described many of the protests as largely peaceful, though clashes have increased in recent days.

Local and State Leaders Push Back

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, a frequent target of Trump’s criticism, urged the president to refrain from deploying additional troops.

“I’m making a direct appeal to the President: Let’s turn the temperature down. Stop this campaign of retribution. This is not who we are,” Walz said in a social media post last week.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey warned that sending in the military would worsen the situation. “That would be a shocking step,” Frey said in an interview on NBC’s Meet the Press. “We don’t need more federal agents to keep people safe. We are safe.”