The Trump administration is reportedly gearing up to potentially dispatch 1,500 military personnel to Minnesota, as confirmed by a senior U.S. official to Fox News Digital.
According to the official, the 11th Airborne Division of the U.S. Army, stationed in Alaska and known for its expertise in cold-weather and mountain operations, has received orders to prepare for deployment. The Washington Post initially reported on the Pentagon’s state of readiness.
On Thursday, President Donald Trump issued a warning that he might invoke the Insurrection Act to send military forces to Minnesota, should state authorities fail to curb anti-ICE demonstrations.
Trump stated on his Truth Social platform, “If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t enforce the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are simply doing their job, I will enact the INSURRECTION ACT.”
President Trump is allegedly considering the deployment of 1,500 troops to Minnesota, as depicted in a photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.
The cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are already home to approximately 3,000 federal agents, who were deployed there following a major fraud scandal that shook the state late last year.
Protesters across the Twin Cities have followed and harassed federal agents as they carry out operations, leading to confrontations and the killing of activist Renee Nicole Good by federal agents in the opening days of January.
Aliya Rahman is detained by federal agents near the scene where Renee Nicole Good was fatally shot by an ICE officer, on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (Adam Gray/AP)
Trump toned down the pressure in a statement on Friday, saying he did not see at that point a reason to invoke the Insurrection Act.
“I believe it was Bush, the elder Bush, he used it, I think 28 times,” Trump told reporters while departing the White House. “It’s been used a lot. And if I needed it, I’d use it. I don’t think there’s any reason right now to use it, but if I needed it, I’d use it. It’s very powerful.”
The readiness order for the 11th Airborne Division was given prior to the Friday statement.
The Insurrection Act reportedly has not been invoked since the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which began after four police officers were acquitted in the beating of Rodney King.
Despite Trump’s threat, some Republicans are resistant to the idea of using the centuries-old law.
Members of law enforcement work the scene following the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good on Jan. 7, 2026, in Minneapolis. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., seemed to downplay Trump’s threat, placing his hope in local law enforcement’s ability to “settle things down.”
“Hopefully the local officials working with not only the federal law enforcement, ICE and other agencies, but also the local law enforcement officials, will be able to settle things down,” Thune told reporters.
