CITY CASTTwin Cities
City Cast Twin Cities

City Cast Twin Cities

👋 Goodbye, ICE agents

February 13, 2026 · Anna Weggel and Sean McPherson edited the City Cast Twin Cities newsletter this week. Winter Keefer contributed to Monday's newsletter. Feedback? Email [email protected].

Hey Twin Cities. It’s Adam today. It's been so encouraging to see folks joining our City Cast Neighbors program to support our work and the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota – special thanks to Liz B.B. for becoming a Neighbor yesterday! She said she joined in order to support local journalism and the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, and get those sweet, sweet. ad-free podcasts. Welcome, Liz!

For $10 per month, City Cast Neighbors support the work we do every day here and get invites to exclusive member events like our upcoming meal-packing shift at Second Harvest Heartland. And, like Liz said, for a limited time, we are donating the first three months of new membership proceeds to the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota. You can find more information on how to support here.

Today’s Must-Know

A large group of people holding up signs in protest of ICE
After months of protest and resistance, the federal government is ending its immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota. (Adam Sage / City Cast Twin Cities)

The End of Operation Metro Surge

In a press conference yesterday morning, border czar Tom Homan announced the end of ICE's unprecedented surge in the Twin Cities. [Minnesota Reformer]

  • 'Mission accomplished': Homan touted the success of the operation, pointing to 4,000 arrests made by immigration enforcement agents and saying that "the surge is leaving Minnesota safer." Critics note that many residents felt less safe during the surge, which resulted in the deaths of Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti. With 3,000 federal agents deployed to Minnesota, the operation has averaged roughly 1.3 arrests per agent, a statistic opponents cite as evidence of its inefficiency. [Associated Press / 🎧 City Cast Twin Cities]
  • Why now? Homan said the decision to scale back operations followed what he called “unprecedented cooperation” with local law enforcement, though Gov. Tim Walz emphasized that the state’s immigration policies remain unchanged after Operation Metro Surge. Recent polling shows broad disapproval of ICE’s operations in Minnesota, which could have influenced the administration’s decision. [🎧 City Cast Twin Cities]
  • What's next? Gov. Walz announced that he will be backing a $10 million emergency fund to help small businesses recover from the impacts of Operation Metro Surge. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey celebrated the announcement, saying, "It's time for a great comeback." Council Member Jason Chavez released a statement urging residents to continue neighborhood patrols until there is further confirmation that ICE is scaling back operations. He also called for the release of residents still in detention and for charges against peaceful observers to be dropped. [🎧 City Cast Twin Cities]

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What the Cities Are Talking About

Good time to commit a crime: The recent mass resignation at the Minnesota U.S. attorney's office has left prosecutors stretched thin. Prosecutors have recently moved to dismiss several cases – a step that is typically rare and, according to public defender Bradford Colbert, signals “an office in crisis.” [Star Tribune]

Happy New Year: Lunar New Year is coming up on Feb. 17, and there is so much to do to celebrate around the Twin Cities. From a free family meal at Rainbow Chinese Restaurant to a Black History x Lunar New Year Celebration, producer Tiffany Bui has you covered on these can't-miss events. [City Cast Twin Cities]

A screenshot of two men on a video call. Both of them have microphones and headphones on
City Cast Twin Cities Host Sean McPherson sits down with CEO David Plotz for the first episode of "Your City Could Be Better." (Your City Could Be Better / City Cast)

New podcast alert: City Cast just launched a new show called "Your City Could Be Better," where CEO David Plotz sits down with local insiders from across the City Cast network to talk about what our cities are doing right and wrong, and how we can work towards a brighter future. The first episode is out now, featuring our very own Sean McPherson! [🎧 Your City Could Be Better]

Walked back: After accusing dozens of Minnesotans of attacking law enforcement agents and posting photos of them on X as part of a "virtual perp walk," U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has quietly charged the protesters with less serious crimes in about 20 cases. Former U.S. attorney John Marti said proceeding with lesser charges indicates that prosecutors don’t have strong evidence and would like to avoid taking the cases before a grand jury. [Star Tribune]

Rent relief: The economic impacts of ICE's surge in the Twin Cities will be felt for years to come. Many GoFundMe campaigns and mutual aid funds have popped up in the past month to try to help residents pay their rent, and Neighbors Helping Neighbors is teaming up with Family Housing Fund with a goal of raising $1.3 million to help 1,000 families stay housed this month. [Stand With Minnesota]

What to Do

Friday, Feb 13

Saturday, Feb 14

Sunday, Feb 15

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Thanks for sticking together out there, Twin Cities. It has been inspiring to watch the community come together throughout the past few months, and I look forward to sharing the stories of how we continue to lift each other up as ICE's presence here comes to a close. If you appreciate the work we do to keep you informed and you'd like to support us, consider becoming a Neighbor today.

We'll be off Monday, but back in your inbox and your podcast feeds on Tuesday morning. Have a great weekend, y'all!

— Adam Sage

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