Youth motorsport riders of the Sliders Flat Track Racing Program have spent countless hours in recent months learning how to ride dirt and electric bikes and build motorcycles while gaining personal development.
The Milwaukee youths are preparing for Flat Out Friday, an international motorcycle race that will take place at Fiserv Forum on Feb. 21. The race features over 300 riders of all skill levels.
The Sliders Flat Track Racing Program gives underrepresented youths in Milwaukee free access to electric and dirt bikes, and eventually motorcycles, while introducing them to science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, components.
“Motorsports is not something that people of color typically participate in and sometimes we’re the only people of color there when we race,” said Venisha Simpson, founder of the Sliders Flat Track Racing Program.
Lately, Simpson and co-founder Tiger Mabato have been coaching the riders inside the Boys & Girls Club and on a dirt road in Sheboygan County for Flat Out Friday.
“I love this sport because it’s intergenerational and you’ll find people between 4 to 84 racing on the same track,” Simpson said. “The respect level is low between the young and old in the Black community, so with this event and program we’re absorbing from each other.”
One of the riders in the program is Tiger Mabato’s 11-year-old son Noah.
His interest in motorbikes started when he was 6 and he complained about the condition of a junkyard dirt bike his dad gifted him.
By 7, his dad gave him the opportunity to take the dirt bike apart and rebuild it on his own.
“Engineering and building things is fun to me, but I have to learn to do this on my own without any help,” Noah said.
After rebuilding the dirt bike, he crashed into a tree, leaving him hesitant about the sport and even joining the program.
Noah regained interest after seeing another kid from the program race on a dirt bike.
“I crash often when practicing and racing, but now I know what to do,” Noah said.
Currently, Noah is building a Suzuki RM 85cc dirt bike for his third Flat Out Friday competition.
“This will become my official bike because my last bike was causing me to lose pretty badly,” he said.
He placed ninth last year in the open youth class after falling and crashing his bike, but this year wants to come back stronger.
“It took me a while to get back up last year, but I’m more excited about trying it again,” he said.
According to Tiger Mabato and Simpson, Noah Mabato and Donald Amartey are the only Black youth racers who ride vintage Harley-Davidson bikes in Milwaukee.
“Noah and Donald are making history right now,” Tiger Mabato said.
Justice Osei, 9, is a second-year rider in the Sliders Flat Track Racing Program.
He started without knowing how to ride a regular bike but caught on quickly.
“They taught him that day in just a couple hours how to ride one,” his mom, Malaika Osei, said.
Justice wasn’t drawn into traditional sports or video gaming, but with motorsports found a connection to the people and skills he learned.
“When I’m racing and sometimes make a mistake, I try to lock in and stay focused after it,” he said.
Tiger Mabato is amazed to see kids like Justice latch onto the sport.
“These kids go through so many ups, downs and tears, it’s crazy how quickly they adapted to everything,” Mabato said. “This is a different level of excitement.”
Before getting on a motorbike, every rider and parent is made aware of how dangerous the sport can be.
“The hardest thing is seeing your kid crash and tumble at times, but we prepare them for that, and our biggest thing is safety,” Mabato said.
To ensure safety, the program provides students with motorbikes, helmets, gloves, padding and vests. Parents are responsible for purchasing jeans, long-sleeve shirts and racing boots.
“It’s dangerous, but it’s fun,” Justice said.
Justice broke three toes during a practice from not wearing the proper racing boots.
His mom saw him take a tumble that day on the dirt road.
“I took off running once I saw him crying and grabbing his foot,” Malaika Osei said.
Justice didn’t even realize at first that his toes were broken.
“I didn’t even know until a week later,” he said.
After purchasing a new pair of boots, Justice was ready to ride again.
Motorsports is more than just racing and maintenance.
Flat Out Friday co-founder Jeremy Prach wants riders to know the sport is about developing skills that keep you improving.
“I think the thing that hurts the most is your pride when you fall because many think they’re going to do awesome in a race,” Prach said. “But without a skill base, it’ll be hard to do awesome.”
At the Sliders Flat Track Racing Program, Simpson and Tiger Mabato teach the riders confidence, self-regulation, quick problem solving and self-respect.
“These kids are tough and it takes a different type of mentality to race with these bikes,” Mabato said.
Simpson and Mabato also teach the youth riders how to network and maintain relationships with people like Cameron Smith, one of the few professional Black racers in the country.
To ensure the program has everything it needs, places like Cream City Moto, STACYC, Southeast Sales, Proplate and other local organizations pitch in to donate equipment, design graphics, cover fees for events and more.
The program also received grants from the Greater Milwaukee Foundation and Comoto Cares.
“The race community is very supportive and I love that,” Simpson said.
Tiger Mabato encourages parents to get their children involved in things that spark their interest even if it’s scary and wants them to know that the race part of the program is optional.
“There’s no better feeling than seeing your kid go around the track,” he said.
If you are interested in becoming a part of the program, click here to register and join the waitlist for spring.
To watch, support and cheer the youth riders on at Flat Out Friday, tickets start at $28.
‘It’s dangerous, but it’s fun’: Program connects Milwaukee youth with motorsports and engineering is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
The Columbia Wind project would be a 277-megawatt wind farm with more than 40 wind turbines.
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Writer Patti See of Lake Hallie takes us on a bar crawl to explore how Wisconsin's humble taverns shaped our history and built community.
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The Trump administration recently unveiled new dietary guidelines, changing the food pyramid to put protein, healthy fats and vegetables at the top with wholegrains at the bottom. A Wisconsin dietician outlined three big takeaways.
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Just under 290,000 Wisconsinites signed up to receive health care coverage in 2026 through the Affordable Care Act Marketplace, according to a report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services .
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The state Assembly passed bills Thursday that would ban schools from offering foods with certain ingredients in free or reduced-price meals and make English the official state language.
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As written, the bill would allow tipped workers to subtract those earned tips from what they file in their state income taxes.
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While the numbers are still just projections, they're based in part on trends in actual tax collection and represent a significant uptick in revenue.
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More drilling for copper, gold and other metals in northern Wisconsin could begin next month under a mining company’s plans.
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At direct primary care clinics, patients pay a membership fee that covers basic appointments and screenings, bypassing insurance. Many patients pair it with a high-deductible plan, but some are now forgoing insurance altogether.
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That goal seems to be aligned with Gov. Tony Evers, but it’s unlikely the Democratic governor and the Republican-controlled Legislature will agree on how to achieve it.
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The LFB projection is about $1.53 billion above the projected balance when the 2025-27 biennial budget was enacted last year. Wisconsin State Capitol. (Examiner file photo)
According to a Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) analysis released on Thursday, Wisconsin’s general fund balance at the end of the biennium, June 30, 2027, is projected to be $2.37 billion. The projection is about $1.53 billion above the projected balance when the 2025-27 biennial budget was enacted last year.
According to the LFB, the majority of the growth, $1.367 billion, is due to an increase in estimated tax collections. Other contributions to the growth include $104 million in departmental revenues, an increase of $49.9 million in sum sufficient appropriations and an increase of $107.8 million in the amounts that are estimated to lapse to the general fund.
Both Republicans and Democrats sought to take credit for the news.
Rep. Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) and Sen. Howard Marklein (R- Spring Green) said in a statement that Republicans’ “long-standing commitment to responsible budgeting and fiscal discipline is working.”
The lawmakers warned that the state should continue to exercise caution.
“These increased revenue estimates are driven in part by strong stock market performance and resulting tax collections,” the lawmakers said. “We must be careful when committing to ongoing spending using one-time money. Our disciplined approach has delivered results and put Wisconsin in a strong fiscal position.”
Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) said that the numbers are “a tribute to Wisconsin Democrats, who have prioritized investments in the people of Wisconsin that have improved our state’s economy, provided middle class tax relief and helped make Wisconsin a state where businesses want to invest and families want to live.”
Gov. Tony Evers told reporters that the revenues were larger than expected on Monday and he wanted to use the funds for priorities including over $1 billion in property tax relief. Republican lawmakers have said that they want Evers’ 400-year veto, which gave school districts the ability to enact annual revenue limit increases, repealed in order to deal with rising tax cuts.
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Federal Bureau of Prisons officers on the scene where a federal immigration agent shot a man Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in north Minneapolis. (Photo by Max Nesterak/Minnesota Reformer)
A federal immigration agent shot a man Wednesday evening after a scuffle in north Minneapolis, drawing a crowd of protesters blowing whistles and engaging in minor skirmishes with law enforcement who deployed chemical irritants.
The shooting comes one week after the killing of Renee Good by federal immigration officer Jonathan Ross in south Minneapolis touched off a wave of protests.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said the man who was shot is an undocumented Venezuelan national who was pulled over in a “targeted traffic stop” but ran away. When the officer caught up to him, they got into a fight, after which two bystanders also attacked the officer, according to DHS.
The weapons used on the federal officer: “a shovel or broom stick,” according to DHS.
“Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life. The initial subject was hit in the leg,” DHS said.
Their account couldn’t be confirmed.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said in the briefing Wednesday night that at 6:51 p.m., MPD received 911 calls about the shooting.
The incident began on I-94, O’Hara said, where federal agents were trying to apprehend a man. The man drove towards a house on the 600 block of 24th Avenue North in north Minneapolis, where he crashed the car, ran towards a house and got into a struggle with federal agents when a federal agent shot him.
The man went into the house and refused to come out; eventually, federal agents entered the house. The man was transported to the hospital. His injuries are not life threatening, O’Hara said. He said he heard there was a snow shovel and a broom on the scene.
A video of the aftermath of the scene that casts doubt on some of DHS’ assertions is being widely shared on social media but has not been authenticated by the Reformer yet.
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the state agency that investigates law enforcement shootings, was on the scene along with FBI agents to process evidence.
It’s unclear if state authorities will be allowed to continue investigating the shooting. The U.S. Department of Justice blocked the BCA from participating in the investigation into the fatal shooting of Good, leading local prosecutors to open their own probe.
Scores of demonstrators showed up to the scene, shouting expletives at federal agents and telling them to get out of Minneapolis. Federal agents deployed tear gas and flash bangs, while some protesters shot fireworks at law enforcement. At least two people were detained by federal agents after someone threw fireworks at the agents. At least two vehicles believed to be used by federal officers were vandalized.
O’Hara said the crowd had crossed the line into an unlawful assembly and State Patrol and Hennepin County sheriff’s deputies responded to requests for help with crowd control.
Mayor Jacob Frey renewed his call for residents to remain peaceful and not “take the bait.”
“Go home,” Frey said. “We cannot counter Donald Trump’s chaos with our own brand of chaos.”
By 11:30, law enforcement and demonstrators had mostly left the scene, though some remained.
Frey also renewed his call for DHS to end its aggressive operation in the city, which the agency calls its largest operation ever. Minnesota along with the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul filed a lawsuit seeking to force DHS to end its operation, calling it a “federal invasion.”
The roughly 3,000 federal agents in the state far outnumber Minneapolis’ roughly 600 police officers, who are struggling to respond to 911 calls and investigate crimes on top of near round-the-clock confrontations between federal agents and residents.
“This is not sustainable. This is an impossible situation that our city is presently being put in,” Frey said.
Shawn Jackson was parked nearby the scene with his kids in the car. A law enforcement agency — unclear which one — set off flash bangs that detonated the airbags in his car. Officers then sprayed tear gas. The Minneapolis Fire Department took the children — including a baby suffering breathing problems, Jackson’s mother said — to the hospital.
“They out of control,” Jackson said.
Patricia Abrams was driving past with her sister when they saw the commotion and stopped.
She told the Reformer that the ICE incursion into Minnesota is illegal and should end.
“The public should know to get these motherf*cking ICE people outta here. They over here illegally trying to lock immigrants up. B*tch, y’all over here illegally — excuse my French — y’all here illegally trying to lock people up.”
She added: “D’f*ck’s wrong with you?”
Local and state politicians were also on the scene: Rep. Mohamud Noor, DFL-Minneapolis, and Minneapolis council members including Elliott Payne, Jason Chavez, Aisha Chughtai and Jamal Osman.
The shooting happened just moments before Gov. Tim Walz made a statewide address encouraging Minnesotans to record federal immigration actions, promising that “accountability is coming” for abuses by federal officers.
This story was originally produced by Minnesota Reformer, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Wisconsin Examiner, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
Department of Homeland Security police clash with protesters at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility south of downtown Portland, Ore. President Donald Trump continues to threaten federal funding both to “sanctuary cities” such as Portland and the states where they’re located. (Photo by Alex Baumhardt/Oregon Capital Chronicle)
President Donald Trump’s threat this week to stop federal funding to both so-called “sanctuary” cities and the states where they’re located was greeted with disbelief by many states and cities since the administration has fared poorly on that issue in court.
“We will go to court within seconds, and we will win if he does this. It’s already proven unlawful. We’ve already won multiple times,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta told ABC News7 in San Francisco on Wednesday.
“Those are funds that belong to the people of Chicago, not the President,” Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson said in a statement. There were similar reactions in Massachusetts and New York City.
Trump, speaking Tuesday to the Detroit Economic Club, said he would cut off “any payments” starting Feb. 1 “to sanctuary cities or states having sanctuary cities, because they do everything possible to protect criminals at the expense of American citizens.”
Trump was responding to those communities with policies against helping U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrest people suspected of living illegally in the United States. States and cities reacting thus far have said it would be illegal for the Trump administration to withhold all federal funding, noting that judges have made that clear in recent rulings.
Cities and states with so-called sanctuary policies generally refuse to assist with immigration raids and refuse some requests for local jails to hold prisoners for deportation, depending on the crimes involved.
There’s no universal definition of a “sanctuary city,” but the U.S. Department of Justice published a list in August that includes 12 states, the District of Columbia, four counties and 18 cities. States either listed as sanctuary by themselves or as including one of the cities were: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
The Trump administration is attempting to force more cooperation with immigration arrests. But it suffered a serious court reversal last July, when a federal judge dismissed a federal sanctuary policies case against Illinois, Chicago and surrounding Cook County.
We will go to court within seconds, and we will win if he does this.
– California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Democrat
The state and local policies reflect a “decision to not participate in enforcing civil immigration law — a decision protected by the Tenth Amendment,” U.S. District Judge Lindsay Jenkins wrote. That order is now under appeal.
A California judge also issued a preliminary injunction in August stopping the Trump administration from cutting unrelated funding over sanctuary policies. The injunction covers 50 areas in 14 states. That case is also now on hold pending an appeal by the Trump administration.
In that case, U.S. District Judge William Orrick ruled that the Trump orders to stop funding over immigration policy were “coercive” and “intended to commandeer local officials into enforcing federal immigration practices and law.”
Stateline reporter Tim Henderson can be reached at thenderson@stateline.org.
This story was originally produced by Stateline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Wisconsin Examiner, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
President Donald Trump addresses the Detroit Economic Club at the MotorCity Casino on Jan. 13, 2025. (Photo by Ben Solis/Michigan Advance)
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump outlined his health care proposals to Congress on Thursday, asking lawmakers to approve several broad policy changes “without delay” — but left out any mention of enhanced tax credits whose expiration has left some Americans with skyrocketing costs.
Health care costs, especially the rising price of health insurance, have become a frequent talking point for politicians from both political parties following last year’s government shutdown, when Democrats repeatedly called on Republicans to extend the now-expired enhanced tax credits for Affordable Care Act marketplace plans.
Trump reiterated in a five-minute video that he wants Congress to give Americans money directly so they can use it to offset the cost of health insurance or health care, a proposal that has so far been unable to get the traction needed to advance on Capitol Hill.
Trump didn’t detail any income caps on the direct payments, which would likely be sent to Health Savings Accounts as opposed to a simple check. He also didn’t say how much per month or annually he wants lawmakers to provide Americans, leaving it for members of Congress to hash out.
“The government is going to pay the money directly to you. It goes to you, and then you take the money and buy your own health care,” Trump said. “Nobody has ever heard of that before, and that’s the way it is. The big insurance companies lose and the people of our country win.”
The enhanced ACA marketplace tax credits, first implemented by Democrats during the coronavirus pandemic, expired at the end of 2025. The subsidies helped to keep premiums lower than they would have otherwise been for about 22 million Americans on those health insurance plans.
The House voted earlier this month to keep the enhanced tax credits going for another three years, but the bill has stalled in the Senate as a bipartisan group of lawmakers tries to reach consensus on two more years of the subsidies with significant changes.
Trump said in the video that Congress should approve legislation that requires prescription drug companies to ensure Americans pay the lowest price in the world for pharmaceuticals, a policy known as “most favored nation” that he has pursued during his second term.
“So instead of Americans paying the highest drug prices in the world, which we have for decades, we will now be paying the lowest cost paid by any other nation,” he said. “So any other nation that’s paying the lowest cost, that’s what we’re going to pay. And the American people will get the savings.”
Trump said the legislative request, which he dubbed “The Great Health Care Plan,” would require health insurance companies and health care providers to publicly share easy-to-understand information about what they charge and how much they make in profit.
“As the saying goes, sunlight is the best disinfectant. That is why my plan orders all insurance companies to publish rate and coverage comparisons in very plain English,” Trump said. “It requires insurers to publish detailed information about how much of your money they’re going to be paying out in claims versus how much they’re taking in in profits.”
Health insurance companies, he said, would be required to detail how many claims they deny and whether those refusals to pay for health care were overturned on appeal.
“And most importantly, it will require any hospital or insurer who accepts Medicare or Medicaid to prominently post all prices at their place of business so that you are never surprised and you can easily shop for a better deal or better care,” Trump said, though a 2019 rule created a similar requirement. “We will have maximum price transparency and costs will come down incredibly.”
A one-page outline of the proposal posted to the White House website doesn’t detail whether Trump wants Congress to approve the policy requests through the complex budget reconciliation process that Republicans used to approve the “big, beautiful” law this summer or to negotiate a bipartisan bill with Democrats.
A White House official, speaking on background on a call with reporters to detail the plan and the next steps, said the administration believes the “proposals all have broad support from the American people.”
“We expect both Republicans and Democrats to be able to embrace them, so reconciliation would not be necessary,” the official said.
The framework is intended to provide “broad direction” to lawmakers, leaving negotiators the ability to take any bill they may write in different directions, the official said, adding the administration is “open to working” with Congress on the details.
“We want to make progress,” the official said. “We’re not laying out a specific path.”
The official said the president leaving out any mention of the expired enhanced tax credits for people who purchase their health insurance from the Affordable Care Act marketplace was not intended to cut off ongoing bipartisan talks in the Senate.
“This does not specifically address those bipartisan congressional negotiations that are going on,” the official said. “It does say that we have a preference that money goes to people, as opposed to insurance companies.”
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz said on the same call with reporters that the framework focused on “four pillars” the administration believes must be codified into law — solidifying most favored nation drug pricing, lowering health insurance costs, transparency from health insurance companies and more pricing information from health care providers.
“Although we’re taking major action at CMS, including fines and the like, having Congress say, ‘This is how it’s going to be, this is a law of the land’ is important,” Oz said, adding that he really does believe there can be bipartisan support for at least some of the proposals.
Oz said the administration’s approach to bring down the cost of prescription drugs to the lowest level offered anywhere in the world is not intended to impede innovation and reiterated that lawmaking is crucial for longer-term stability.
“We believe by codifying it, we’ll make sure that the drug companies stay engaged for future administrations,” Oz said. “We also believe that by doing it correctly, we’ll not overreach and create challenges to life-saving drugs being continually evolved and developed in the United States.”
The Trump administration, he said, wants Congress to give the Food and Drug Administration more leeway to convert prescription medications to over-the-counter availability, possibly increasing competition and decreasing prices.
Oz said the price transparency portion of the request would help Americans to have more information about how long it takes to get routine appointments and whether health insurance companies are able to keep their rates down by frequently denying claims.
An aerial view of residential housing under construction at a planned community in Fontana, California, on Sept. 17, 2025. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Democrats began detailing their affordability agenda Thursday ahead of the November midterm elections, starting with a focus on housing.
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said during an event at the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning think tank, that if Democrats regain control of the House and Senate they would pass legislation to expand rental assistance, reduce barriers to home ownership, build more housing and address predatory practices.
Schumer listed several statistics he finds concerning, including that the median price of a home has gone up by 55% since the coronavirus pandemic, that rent has risen by one-third and that the average age for a first-time home buyer is 40.
“That’s a record high,” he said. “That’s a devastating statistic that should shake up everyone in a position of power at the federal, state or local levels.”
Schumer said the outline for housing is just the first of several cost-of-living policy proposals Democrats will detail this year as they seek to sway voters in key districts and states to vote for their candidates over Republicans.
Democrats, he said, will also focus on how to curb the rising cost of groceries, electricity, child care and health care as part of the midterms messaging.
On housing, Schumer said Democrats will focus on legislation that would
Democratic bills would provide down payment assistance, lower the cost of mortgage insurance, expand access to portable mortgages and “reform homeowners insurance which is now at a crisis level and so important for people who can’t afford that down payment,” Schumer said.
Democrats have relatively good odds of winning back control of the House during the November midterm elections, especially since the president’s party tends to lose that chamber two years after taking power.
Campaigns to regain control of the Senate will be much more difficult for Democrats, who face challenges keeping seats in Georgia and Michigan, while trying to flip Republican seats in Alaska, Maine, North Carolina and Ohio.
Even if voters were to give Democrats control of Congress, leaders in the party would still need some Republican buy-in to move legislation past the Senate’s 60-vote legislative filibuster and need President Donald Trump to sign legislation into law, unless they had the two-thirds needed in each chamber to override a veto.
Hawaii Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz said during a panel discussion with Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth that was moderated by CAP President and CEO Neera Tanden that he’s been “radicalized on housing” and pressed for members of the party to talk realistically about issues with supply and affordability.
“And the reason is that our shortage nationwide, but especially in Hawaii, is so acute that people can’t make the math work anymore,” Schatz said. “In Hawaii, people are paying more than 50%, all-in, of their income for housing, either rental housing or paying a mortgage. And what I have come to realize is that we are the problem.”
Schatz argued that the government “is the primary impediment to alleviating the shortage” and said that realization has led him to have some “very difficult conversations.”
In Hawaii, he said, there are environmental and cultural protections intended to safeguard “special places” but that have ended up applied more broadly, impeding housing development.
“They were not originally conceived to prevent a walk-up apartment building on the corner of Eisenberg and King to house Native Hawaiian families,” Schatz said. “And yet those same laws are being weaponized against people in Hawaii even being able to live in the state of Hawaii.”
Schatz said Democrats must be honest with voters about what their housing policies would mean for communities throughout the country, contending the party needs to “solve the politics” around expanded housing before it can tackle the policy debate.
“I actually think we have to have this family conversation around the politics of housing and realize that some of our base voters in the suburbs, who are otherwise good all the way down the line on all the progressive issues, also want to prevent a nurse or a firefighter or the disabled or the elderly or the student from living anywhere near them,” Schatz said. “And we have to have that conversation in the progressive coalition.”
Duckworth said some solutions to housing could come through rethinking the processes in place now, similar to how the Department of Veterans Affairs changed its approach to homeless veterans.
“VA used to say, ‘You have to get clean and sober, and then we’ll give you a voucher to get into an apartment.’ And so it made no sense, right?” Duckworth said.
“So we had to change the thinking to what the homelessness community had been working on, which is reduction of harm — get them into the housing and then work on getting them clean and sober,” she continued. “And by changing that thought, we were able to immediately start pulling veterans off the streets, put them into housing units where they immediately were also getting counseling, getting treatment.”
Duckworth compared the sometimes slow process of housing inspections that can stop construction with the way the government approaches vehicle safety as one possible way to get things moving faster.
“With automobiles, we say, ‘This car that you’re manufacturing must be able to withstand a crash at 35 miles an hour into a brick wall.’ And then when they meet and get that car approved, when we go buy that car, we don’t have to take that car to get it inspected from top to bottom, like we do with homes,” Duckworth said.
She added: “So why would we not say to homebuilders, especially (prefabricated) homes, if you come to VA and you are willing to get two models of your home, pre-inspected, pre-approved, then when a veteran builds a new home and they say, ‘Hey, I’m going to choose one of these models that already has a VA good housekeeping seal of approval,’ they can shortcut that inspection process.”
Flags of the 11 Native American tribes of Wisconsin in the Wisconsin State Capitol. (Wisconsin Examiner photo)
“How sad that indigenous people have to prove they are not illegal immigrants,” wrote Cindy Smith in response to a Facebook posting by the Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.
On Jan. 10, the LCO Tribal Governing Board issued an immediate release that it was “closely monitoring recent events that took place in Minneapolis, and around the country involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agents.”
Just a few days before, on Wednesday, Jan. 7, a 37-year-old woman, Renee Good, was shot and killed in her vehicle by an ICE agent in South Minneapolis.
Over 1,000 ICE agents were in the Twin Cities area as a major campaign that has received national attention to detain and arrest those who had reportedly violated federal immigration laws. The agents not only tracked down those without legal status to reside in the U.S., but also questioned and detained others because of their appearance, such as skin color and accent, whether or not they were legal residents or citizens. Caught up in the crackdown were at least five Native Americans who were detained, including four Oglala Sioux from South Dakota and one from the Red Lake reservation in Minnesota.
Jose Roberto “Beto” Ramirez, a Red Lake descendant, told a reporter for ICT that he was trailed by an SUV and when he parked in a grocery store parking lot, he was dragged out of his vehicle without explanation and detained for several hours. Ramirez said he felt like he had been “kidnapped”. He was subsequently released without any charges.
News reports from the Twin Cities have stated that Native Americans, who are fully U.S. citizens, had been approached by ICE agents regarding their immigration/citizenship status.
In response to Native Americans being stopped by ICE, several Wisconsin tribes issued statements voicing concern over the stops and also offering advice to their members.
“We humbly offer our sincere condolences to all those affected by these incidents,” reads the Lac Courte Oreilles release, which assured members that the Tribal Governing Board “is actively working to ensure our tribe and members are as safe as possible and is reviewing policies to implement access restrictions in areas that are non-public, employee-only, and restricted to ensure our facilities are entitled to every legal protection possible.
“In these unprecedented and uncertain times, it is essential that we remain vigilant and protect one another. We encourage everyone to stand together in solidarity to support each other spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. The safety and well-being of all tribal members continues to be our highest priority. We will do everything in our power to protect our members, reservation, government buildings, and enterprises.”
Jon Greendeer, president of the Ho-Chunk Nation posted Wednesday, Jan. 14, “My office and social media feeds have been buzzing with concerned tribal members following the recent shooting of an American Citizen by an armed ICE official. Now with the news of alleged door-to-door campaigns, the threat literally hits home.”
Also on Jan. 14, the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians posted the following: “The Tribe wants to be clear: we do not support or cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Our priority is the safety, dignity, and protection of our tribal members. We are deeply concerned by reports coming out of Minnesota involving the detention of tribal members, as well as ICE actively being reported in areas near our community. As indigenous people to this land, our identity should never be questioned, challenged, or used as a reason for detention.”
On Jan. 12, the St. Croix Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians issued a statement on “opposing ICE and affirming tribal sovereignty,” which said, in part, that tribal leaders “strongly oppose the actions and presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) including the targeting of community members, the detention and separation of families, and the ongoing disregard of human rights.”
On Jan. 10, the Stockbridge-Munsee Community alerted members on Facebook that Native Americans “are being caught up in raids and detained.”
Like several of the tribal posts, the Stockbridge-Munsee tribe encourages its members to be prepared for being “stopped, detained and questioned regarding your citizenship.”
Even though tribal members are U.S. citizens, Wisconsin tribal members are being encouraged to carry their tribal, state and federal IDs and even birth certificates.
On Jan. 14, the LCO tribe said it would be issuing ID cards for enrolled members who live off the reservation in the Twin Cities at the Minneapolis American Indian Center Rotunda, and like other tribes, LCO noted that fees are being waived for the ID cards.
On Jan. 11, the Oneida Nation offered detailed guidance if members encountered ICE agents:
Several tribes are notifying members that if the ICE agents do not have a warrant signed by a judge, the agents do not have permission to enter their home without consent.
ICE agents have been observed approaching homes and businesses with administrative warrants issued by ICE, which lack the legal weight of a judicial warrant.
Some of the tribes are advising members if ICE comes to their doors without a judicial warrant to not only not open their doors, but also report the presence of the ICE agents to tribal police.
The Ho-Chunk Nation said it will provide its members with door signs for law enforcement that “alert” officers of the “state, tribal and federal citizenship” status of the residents and communicate that “agents may not enter the property without a valid warrant.”
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.
Residents confront federal agents following a shooting incident on Jan. 14, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump threatened on Thursday morning to send the military into Minnesota to stop protests, following another shooting by immigration agents that injured one person, seven days after an agent fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis.
Writing on his own social media platform, Trump said he would invoke the Insurrection Act, a 19th-century law empowering the government to deploy the military domestically to “repress insurrections and repel invasions.”
“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., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State. Thank you for you attention to this matter! President DJT,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The law grants an exception to the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits the military from performing domestic law enforcement.
The Insurrection Act was last invoked in 1992 under President George H. W. Bush in response to civil unrest that included the deaths of 63 people, following the acquittal of four white police officers charged with beating Black driver Rodney King. The statute has been used about 30 times since the country’s founding, according to records kept by the Brennan Center for Justice.
Protests erupted across the Twin Cities after Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good in south Minneapolis on Jan. 7.
The demonstrations escalated Wednesday night after a federal immigration agent shot and injured a man in north Minneapolis.
According to a statement issued by the Department of Homeland Security, a man crashed his vehicle and ran away as agents were “conducting a targeted traffic stop” at 6:50 p.m. Central time. An agent fired “a defensive shot to defend his life” after the man and two bystanders “attacked the law enforcement officer with a snow shovel and broom handle,” according to the statement.
The agent shot the man in the leg, according to the department. The statement described the man as “an illegal alien from Venezuela who was released into the country by Joe Biden in 2022.”
States Newsroom’s Minnesota Reformer was unable to confirm the account.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said in a late-night press conference that the man was transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The Reformer reported that scores of demonstrators arrived at the scene, sparking a back-and-forth with agents, who deployed tear gas and flash bangs. Agents detained at least two people after someone threw fireworks at the agents. At least two vehicles believed to be used by federal officers were vandalized. The clashes largely stopped by 11:30 p.m., according to the Reformer.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat, asked for calm and reiterated his call for the Trump administration to remove ICE from the city. Frey urged the protesters to “go home.”
“We cannot counter Donald Trump’s chaos with our own brand of chaos,” he said.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz in addition renewed calls Wednesday for Trump to withdraw ICE. Walz also asked residents in a Wednesday evening address to record ICE encounters with the public to help “create a database of the atrocities against Minnesotans, not just to establish a record for posterity but to bank evidence for future prosecution.”
Minnesota, Minneapolis and St. Paul officials are suing the Trump administration for what they allege is “a federal invasion of the Twin Cities.”
Trump surged more ICE agents to Minneapolis following the fatal shooting of Good, bringing the total to roughly 3,000 — far outnumbering the city’s 600 local police officers.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told reporters Thursday morning that she has “no plans” of withdrawing ICE from Minneapolis.
She described the situation on the ground as “violent violation of the law in many places.”
“I discussed with the president this morning several things that we are dealing with under the department in different operations. We did discuss the Insurrection Act. He certainly has the constitutional authority to utilize that. My hope is that this leadership team in Minnesota will start to work with us to get criminals off the streets,” Noem told reporters at the White House.
Noem attributed current ICE “surge operations” in the Twin Cities to a massive COVID-19 financial fraud case, which federal prosecutors in Minneapolis had already been pursuing for years.
During an afternoon briefing, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt blamed Democrats for violence in Minneapolis.
“I think the President’s Truth Social post spoke very loud and clear to Democrats across this country, elected officials who are using their platforms to encourage violence against federal law enforcement officers,” she told reporters.
Leavitt held up photos of vehicles covered in spray paint, alleging that ICE property was “vandalized last night by these left-wing agitators.”
Leavitt also said “comrades” of the man pursued, and then shot, by the ICE agent “used a shovel or broom to smash his face in.”
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