Attorney General Ford Joins Multistate Coalition Condemning DOJ Threats Against Minnesota

Carson City, NV — Today, Nevada Attorney General Aaron D. Ford announced that he joined a coalition of 21 other attorneys general in denouncing the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) latest attempt to coerce the State of Minnesota. In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, the coalition condemned the Trump administration’s effort to exploit the situation in Minnesota to pressure state leaders into turning over sensitive resident data and dismantling longstanding public safety policies. The attorneys general warn that these threats likely conflict with ongoing litigation and court-ordered protections.

“Minnesotans have been besieged by federal agents who have terrorized communities and caused the deaths of two American citizens,” said Attorney General Ford. “To suggest this needlessly violent and inflammatory operation will only end if the governor complies with demands to transgress our country’s constitutional balance of powers is abhorrent. We must see this with clear eyes: this is an attack on state sovereignty and further ICE actions are being used as blackmail."

Attorney General Ford and the coalition sent today's letter in response to Attorney General Bondi’s January 24 letter to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, which accused the state of enabling widespread fraud and demanded a series of actions in exchange for the withdrawal of federal agents from Minnesota. The demands included requests that Minnesota turn over sensitive Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) data; dismantle critical local public safety policies; and grant the federal government access to Minnesota voter information.

The attorneys general warn that Attorney General Bondi’s letter threatens the constitutional balance of power between the states and the federal government. They assert that the demands intrude on state sovereignty and are intended to coerce the state of Minnesota. With so many of DOJ’s actions already blocked by courts across the country, the attorneys general argue that the administration is attempting to force an outcome that it could not achieve through the courts.

Attorney General Ford and the coalition make clear that their states will continue to stand firm against unlawful federal interference and will defend both state sovereignty and the rights of their residents. The coalition urges the administration to end its dangerous and unlawful campaign against Minnesota immediately and stand down its alarming demands.

Joining Attorney General Ford in sending this letter, which was led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.

###