Are the ICE riots coordinated and politically enabled?

 The riots appear to be highly coordinated and timed. Protesters practice the chants in classroom-style settings. They arrive in a coordinated fashion. Local law enforcement is instructed to stand down. The danger in a handful of locations, with Minneapolis at the top of the list, is escalating. But the same is not occurring in Red cities and states or in the majority of Blue cities and states.

What we are witnessing has all the trappings of organization, manipulation, and political weaponization. This is straight out of the insurrection playbook.

Just three months ago, leaders inside the protest-organizing industry warned that “crowds-for-hire” operations are ripe for abuse by foreign and domestic agitators. Now we are seeing what they warned about playing out in real time: Riots centered in Minnesota spread to New York City when protesters stormed a Manhattan hotel believing ICE was inside — many of them reportedly with prior arrest records.

A thorough investigation is necessary. The light needs to shine in the darkness.

Send your faxes to demand that Congress investigate and expose what is happening inside these ICE riots immediately.

The most heartbreaking truth is this: the deaths tied to these riots were preventable. Mark Ross, president of the St. Paul Police Federation, said plainly that coordination between local and federal officers could have stopped the violence. “Had we been allowed just a little bit of coordination… I believe… there would be no loss of life.”

That is an admission from local law enforcement. Politics stood in the way of protection. Professional agitators got involved and lives were lost.

A former Special Forces warrant officer with extensive counterinsurgency experience said that Minneapolis closely mirrors the early stages of organized insurgent operations that he personally witnessed overseas. Eric Schwalm describes a structure built on coordination, secrecy, and specialized roles — including spotters, mobile chasers, shared databases logging federal vehicles, and encrypted Signal groups.

“What’s unfolding in Minneapolis right now isn’t ‘protest.’ It’s low-level insurgency infrastructure, built by people who’ve clearly studied the playbook.” Schwalm notes that the command-and-control systems, vetting of participants, timed deletion of messages, and operational discipline resemble tactics used against U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Most alarming, this network is domestic — organized by Americans against American law enforcement. “This isn’t spontaneous outrage. This is C2 (command and control) with redundancy, OPSEC [Operations Security] hygiene, and task organization that would make a SF [Special Forces] team sergeant nod in recognition.”

He warns that once citizens build parallel intelligence and rapid-response systems that include doxxing, vehicle tracking, and coordinated obstruction, the situation moves beyond civil disobedience into something far more dangerous. Having spent years dismantling similar systems abroad, he concludes, “Now pieces of it are standing up in American cities, enabled by elements of local government and civil society. That should keep every thinking American awake at night.”

This is how unrest spreads: first tolerated, then normalized, then exported.

This crisis is bigger than one city and bigger than these senseless deaths. When state and federal authorities cooperate, communities get peace. When ICE is demonized, bad actors enter. Minneapolis has become ground zero, but now the same tactics are spreading to New York and other sanctuary cities. Tell Congress to peel back the lies and expose the truth.

This is not the first time Minnesota had similar problems. During the George Floyd riots, Governor Tim Walz’s wife said she kept her windows open to “smell the burning tires” as a personal “touchstone” in connection with the riots. That is not leadership. That is ideological sympathy with destruction.

Their daughter took it to a whole different level when she exposed movements of the National Guard on social media — and that same night, a police station was overrun and burned.

Liberty Counsel Action exists to bring the truth to light. Our role is not to speculate but to demand investigation and accountability.

We need thousands of Americans flooding congressional offices with this message: Start investigating. Uncover the masterminds. Hold them accountable. Protect Americans.

This is about whether America will allow organized lawlessness to replace constitutional order. In these riots, we are seeing tactics mirror those used by international regimes that despise our freedom. Silence is not an option.

Your donation today helps our team expose what is happening behind these riots. This is a battle for truth, safety, and the rule of law.

We cannot allow coordinated unrest to metastasize across America. Make your voice heard with your donation today.

Mat Staver, Chairman
John Stemberger, President
Liberty Counsel Action

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Demand Congress investigate the ICE riots now — Fax Congress and insist on public hearings and full transparency.

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Sources:

“Anti-ICE Agitators Take Over NYC Hilton Lobby.” Fox News, January 27, 2026. Foxnews.com/video/6388409707112.

Fenton, Reuven, and Anthony Blair. “Minnesota Cops Beg Walz, Pols to Let Them Work With ICE, Say They Could Have Prevented Shootings.” New York Post, January 28, 2026, NYPost.com/2026/01/28/us-news/police-union-head-slams-minn-as-gov-walz-agrees-to-have-top-cop-work-with-border-czar/.

Land, Olivia. “Tim Walz’s Wife, Gwen, Said She Kept Windows Open During George Floyd Riots to Smell ‘Burning Tires.’” New York Post, August 7, 2024. NYPost.com/2024/08/07/us-news/gwen-walz-said-she-kept-windows-open-during-george-floyd-riots-to-smell-burning-tires/.

Price, Stepheny. “‘No Kings’ Protest Could Attract Paid Agitators, Foreign Influence, Ccrowd-for-Hire CEO Warns.” Fox News, October 12, 2025. Foxnews.com/us/no-kings-protest-could-attract-paid-agitators-foreign-influence-crowd-for-hire-ceo-warns.