WEBVTT - DHS Surveillance and Infiltration of ICE Protests in Minnesota 0:00:07.170 --> 0:00:10.959 Welcome to It Could Happen Here, I'm Garrison Davis. A 0:00:10.980 --> 0:00:15.400 few months ago, the Department of Justice indicted 15 anti-ICE 0:00:15.480 --> 0:00:19.960 protesters who participated in the community response to Operation Metro 0:00:20.040 --> 0:00:25.500 Surge in Minneapolis, Minnesota, earlier this year. Here's U.S. Attorney 0:00:25.620 --> 0:00:29.890 Daniel Rosen announcing the charges. in a press conference dated 0:00:30.010 --> 0:00:33.150 June 16, 2026. 0:00:33.150 --> 0:00:38.949 Last year, President Trump issued National Security Presidential Memorandum 7, 0:00:38.950 --> 0:00:43.019 which directed the Department of Justice to prioritize politically motivated violence. 0:00:44.159 --> 0:00:47.660 To accomplish that mission, the Deputy Attorney General stood up 0:00:47.700 --> 0:00:53.199 Joint Task Force Vanguard to enforce a national security strategy 0:00:54.120 --> 0:00:57.610 to investigate, prosecute, and disrupt violence those who engage in 0:00:57.650 --> 0:01:03.690 political violence and intimidation. Today, a federal indictment was unsealed, 0:01:04.370 --> 0:01:09.220 charging 15 defendants with conspiracy to impede or injure federal 0:01:09.319 --> 0:01:14.580 officers and other charges related to efforts of two Minneapolis-based 0:01:15.180 --> 0:01:20.000 Antifa groups that violently opposed the enforcement of federal law 0:01:20.020 --> 0:01:20.580 in our state. 0:01:21.500 --> 0:01:22.490 As U.S. 0:01:22.550 --> 0:01:28.330 Attorney Daniel Rosen said, All 15 quote-unquote Antifa defendants were 0:01:28.370 --> 0:01:33.510 charged with conspiracy to impede or injure an officer. According 0:01:33.530 --> 0:01:40.000 to the DOJ, the conspiracy to impede amounted to plans 0:01:40.080 --> 0:01:45.660 to temporarily block roadways around the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, 0:01:46.080 --> 0:01:49.180 where ICE operations in the Twin Cities were and still 0:01:49.320 --> 0:01:55.410 are based out of. The start of the 95-page indictment reads, quote, 0:01:56.010 --> 0:02:00.430 The defendants were members and associates of Twin Cities Direct Action, 0:02:01.010 --> 0:02:05.810 which later changed its name to Direct Action Minnesota or DAM, 0:02:06.370 --> 0:02:09.850 an organization dedicated and committed to direct action against federal 0:02:09.889 --> 0:02:14.630 law and immigration enforcement. Direct action refers to disruptive and 0:02:14.770 --> 0:02:19.169 obstructive tactics used by participants to forcibly challenge, block, or 0:02:19.250 --> 0:02:24.910 stop immigration raids, detentions, and deportations. Dam describes itself as 0:02:25.310 --> 0:02:28.550 a decentralized coalition of working class people engaged in various 0:02:28.570 --> 0:02:31.790 forms of community defense against the current federal occupation happening 0:02:31.810 --> 0:02:35.260 within the wider metro area and against state and far-right 0:02:35.300 --> 0:02:39.940 violence more broadly, unquote. Here's attorney Daniel Rosen again at 0:02:39.980 --> 0:02:40.820 that press conference. 0:02:41.280 --> 0:02:44.720 The organization trains its members in the aggressive use of 0:02:44.820 --> 0:02:51.230 shields against law enforcement, surveillance, operational planning, and rapid mobilization. 0:02:51.700 --> 0:02:53.120 against law enforcement actions. 0:02:53.960 --> 0:02:57.899 The first piece of evidence presented by Rosen in this 0:02:57.980 --> 0:03:01.680 press conference is a Facebook post by one of the 0:03:01.720 --> 0:03:05.419 defendants reading, it's going to get so much worse and 0:03:05.560 --> 0:03:09.570 nonviolent ideology and our politicians aren't going to save us. 0:03:10.090 --> 0:03:14.530 We need to become ungovernable. We need to actively resist 0:03:14.690 --> 0:03:19.250 any way we can to materially stop the Nazi occupation forces. 0:03:20.370 --> 0:03:23.690 I do think it's worth noting that when President Trump 0:03:23.950 --> 0:03:28.930 spoke at the Libertarian Convention in 2024, the wall behind 0:03:28.990 --> 0:03:35.560 him featured giant text reading, Become Ungovernable. Now, most of 0:03:35.600 --> 0:03:42.810 this 95-page indictment is spent detailing random conversations on Signal 0:03:42.890 --> 0:03:48.170 and various group chats discussing First Amendment activity, planning protests... 0:03:48.150 --> 0:03:53.130 discussing how to go about fundraising, making flyers, participating in 0:03:53.310 --> 0:03:58.380 ICE rapid response, writing articles on Crimethink, and an anarchist 0:03:58.420 --> 0:04:03.020 speaking tour. All of which the indictment lists as, quote, 0:04:03.360 --> 0:04:07.980 overt acts in furtherance of the conspiracy. And that's how 0:04:08.320 --> 0:04:13.380 conspiracy charges work. Not all the overt acts themselves have 0:04:13.460 --> 0:04:17.190 to be illegal. In fact, they usually are not. They 0:04:17.230 --> 0:04:21.130 just have to be actions taken involving multiple people to 0:04:21.190 --> 0:04:26.690 advance some other criminal goal, in this case, quote-unquote, impeding 0:04:26.770 --> 0:04:31.359 law enforcement. And what makes this case particularly weak is 0:04:31.400 --> 0:04:36.299 that the impeding in this case amounts to extremely ordinary 0:04:36.500 --> 0:04:40.930 First Amendment protest. So not only are the majority, if 0:04:40.970 --> 0:04:45.510 not all, of the overt acts listed completely legal actions... 0:04:45.710 --> 0:04:50.350 they were actions taken in furtherance of legally protected First 0:04:50.390 --> 0:04:54.650 Amendment activity. Now, the indictment does list a few other 0:04:54.690 --> 0:04:59.440 charges against specific individuals. One person is charged with allegedly 0:04:59.480 --> 0:05:04.360 making threats based on statements made in Facebook and Instagram videos. 0:05:05.480 --> 0:05:10.990 Two people are charged with interstate stalking based on following 0:05:11.170 --> 0:05:15.790 vehicles leaving the Whipple Building across state lines into Wisconsin. 0:05:16.930 --> 0:05:20.810 One person is charged with allegedly assaulting a federal officer 0:05:20.910 --> 0:05:25.480 by knocking notes out of their hand and destruction of 0:05:25.510 --> 0:05:30.159 government property for kicking a vehicle. And lastly, another defendant 0:05:30.260 --> 0:05:35.000 is charged with assaulting a federal officer for allegedly brake-checking 0:05:35.200 --> 0:05:40.950 and side-swiping the officer's vehicle, causing a collision. No evidence 0:05:41.010 --> 0:05:44.550 for these alleged assaults has been presented thus far. But 0:05:44.830 --> 0:05:51.750 the conspiracy charge tying the 15 defendants together is the most, oh, 0:05:51.810 --> 0:05:54.740 so it's illegal to make plans with friends now, case 0:05:54.880 --> 0:05:58.320 I've ever seen. If it wasn't clear from the moment 0:05:58.339 --> 0:06:00.860 this indictment dropped, it only gets more and more clear 0:06:00.880 --> 0:06:04.240 over time that this case is not based on the 0:06:04.360 --> 0:06:08.039 strength of the evidence or threat to public safety, but 0:06:08.300 --> 0:06:12.990 rather political targeting. based on the beliefs held by the defendants, 0:06:13.810 --> 0:06:18.039 and the DOJ's ability to paint the defendants as antifa 0:06:18.100 --> 0:06:23.219 lunatics separate from the majority of peaceful, liberal anti-ice protesters, 0:06:24.060 --> 0:06:28.700 all while building a precedent to criminalize ordinary First Amendment 0:06:28.779 --> 0:06:33.260 protest activity, including ICE rapid response. To make it so 0:06:33.300 --> 0:06:39.050 that any protest against ICE is qualifies as interfering or 0:06:39.230 --> 0:06:44.270 impeding ICE from carrying out its immigration enforcement duties. And 0:06:44.290 --> 0:06:47.190 to create this precedent, the feds located a small group 0:06:47.240 --> 0:06:52.080 of Antifa, some outside agitators, that they believe a jury 0:06:52.339 --> 0:06:55.900 might be more likely to convict than the dozens and 0:06:55.920 --> 0:06:59.700 dozens of cases that have failed to move forward. In 0:06:59.860 --> 0:07:04.890 absence of any evidence of illegal violent acts, the DOJ 0:07:05.010 --> 0:07:09.550 must rely on radical sounding statements made by the defendants 0:07:09.630 --> 0:07:13.840 discussing their politics to turn a jury against them. And 0:07:13.900 --> 0:07:16.520 that's most of what the indictment contains. It's not detailing 0:07:17.140 --> 0:07:23.200 alleged acts of violence. It's detailing conversations about protesting. This 0:07:23.250 --> 0:07:26.930 indictment contains a lot of signal chat logs, as well 0:07:26.970 --> 0:07:31.770 as conversations from in-person meetings, which leads one to wonder, 0:07:32.630 --> 0:07:37.550 How exactly did DHS obtain that information? Well, a few 0:07:37.590 --> 0:07:41.170 weeks ago, about 30 documents were released as a part 0:07:41.190 --> 0:07:43.830 of a discovery motion filed by one of the defendants. 0:07:44.560 --> 0:07:48.280 And these documents provide maybe the closest look at how 0:07:48.380 --> 0:07:52.120 federal law enforcement under Trump, and specifically how DHS and 0:07:52.200 --> 0:07:58.240 Homeland Security Investigations are investigating and surveilling not just, quote unquote, Antifa, 0:07:58.740 --> 0:08:04.380 but anti-ICE protesters more broadly, community activist groups, left-wing organizations 0:08:04.440 --> 0:08:08.620 and non-profits, and even labor unions. The lawyer for the 0:08:08.640 --> 0:08:13.060 defendant in this case called this a, quote, unprecedented campaign 0:08:13.100 --> 0:08:17.790 by DHS to spy on Minnesotans. Before I get into 0:08:17.810 --> 0:08:20.330 some of these specific details, I want to read the 0:08:20.490 --> 0:08:24.970 opening overview by the defense lawyer, Kevin Ryok, discussing what 0:08:25.130 --> 0:08:29.600 Discovery has so far revealed. Quote, Undercover agents posing as 0:08:29.680 --> 0:08:34.450 protesters surveilled community meetings at churches, parks, libraries, schools, and 0:08:34.630 --> 0:08:39.590 union halls. These agents surreptitiously recorded dozens of conversations with 0:08:39.809 --> 0:08:42.870 ordinary people who were simply exercising their First Amendment right 0:08:42.890 --> 0:08:47.420 to protest ICE's lawless rampage in our state. The agents 0:08:47.460 --> 0:08:50.800 gathered information about Minnesotans from law enforcement databases and internet 0:08:50.840 --> 0:08:56.220 searches and created dossiers that are apparently now available agency-wide. 0:08:56.800 --> 0:09:01.699 Homeland Security Investigations' abuses did not stop there. HSI secretly 0:09:01.760 --> 0:09:06.340 obtained financial records for several national labor unions and social 0:09:06.400 --> 0:09:11.040 justice non-profits, all with zero criminal predicate to do so. 0:09:11.620 --> 0:09:15.360 The government's presentation to the grand jury reflected this broad 0:09:15.559 --> 0:09:19.760 and irrational investigation. With no evidence, the government alleged to 0:09:19.800 --> 0:09:23.320 the grand jury that the conspiracy in this case extends 0:09:23.660 --> 0:09:28.420 far beyond the defendants to include the AFL-CIO, the Minneapolis 0:09:28.480 --> 0:09:33.280 Federation of Educators, the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees, Monarcha, 0:09:33.780 --> 0:09:37.670 Veterans for Peace, and the Grease Pit Bicycle Repair Shop, 0:09:37.890 --> 0:09:42.210 among others. These wild conspiracy allegations are born from the 0:09:42.290 --> 0:09:47.450 fantasies of political retribution that animate the Trump administration. President 0:09:47.490 --> 0:09:50.940 Trump and senior administration officials routinely speak of the political 0:09:50.980 --> 0:09:57.370 left in dehumanizing terms, as deformed, scarred, and filled with ugliness, 0:09:57.450 --> 0:10:02.370 for example. The administration has criticized those sentiments into policies 0:10:02.830 --> 0:10:07.360 that encourage and authorize political prosecutions like this one, most 0:10:07.410 --> 0:10:13.320 notably National Security Presidential Memorandum 7, unquote. I'm not exaggerating 0:10:13.400 --> 0:10:18.000 that this motion filed by the defense is maybe the 0:10:18.380 --> 0:10:23.380 greatest criticism motion I've ever read. The understanding by the 0:10:23.400 --> 0:10:26.660 lawyer in this case of how the Trump administration is 0:10:26.820 --> 0:10:31.900 carrying out state repression against protesters is incredibly politically fluent. 0:10:32.360 --> 0:10:35.559 That last bit at the end discussing administration officials referring 0:10:35.620 --> 0:10:38.880 to the political left as deformed, scarred, or filled with 0:10:38.940 --> 0:10:44.110 ugliness relates to Stephen Miller's comments at Mark Rubio's left-wing 0:10:44.190 --> 0:10:48.170 terrorism summit last month that we discussed on executive disorder. 0:10:48.870 --> 0:10:52.910 And what he said during that conference was legitimately crazy. 0:10:53.590 --> 0:10:55.550 I didn't get to much of what he said in 0:10:56.230 --> 0:10:58.390 our previous episode because we were running short on time. 0:10:58.750 --> 0:11:01.380 But there's one quote I highlighted back then when I 0:11:01.400 --> 0:11:03.400 was doing research that I want to read now. Quote, 0:11:04.240 --> 0:11:07.160 the leftist looks at what is beautiful and what is 0:11:07.280 --> 0:11:11.000 good and what is natural and is filled with envy 0:11:11.120 --> 0:11:15.300 and hatred. The leftist looks at the perfect family with 0:11:15.320 --> 0:11:17.990 the perfect life and the perfect job and perfect kids 0:11:18.030 --> 0:11:20.520 that goes to church every Sunday. and it's filled with 0:11:20.580 --> 0:11:24.730 a feeling of inadequacy and jealousy, and they covet. And 0:11:24.760 --> 0:11:28.030 they turn those emotions ultimately into a desire to subjugate, 0:11:28.130 --> 0:11:31.710 to oppress, and to inflict pain and suffering. It's not 0:11:31.730 --> 0:11:33.270 a coincidence that when you look at any of these 0:11:33.350 --> 0:11:37.710 violent Antifa demonstrations, and you see any photograph of those 0:11:37.929 --> 0:11:41.320 who were assembled, to be blunt, not one of the 0:11:41.380 --> 0:11:45.200 people that is demonstrating looks like a normal person. They're 0:11:45.300 --> 0:11:49.260 all deformed in some way. in their appearance, in their dress, 0:11:49.420 --> 0:11:53.189 in their mannerisms. Why is that? Every one of them, 0:11:53.270 --> 0:11:55.610 through the course of their life and their decisions, has 0:11:55.690 --> 0:11:58.750 scarred their body and their appearance in many different ways, 0:11:59.370 --> 0:12:02.089 to the point in which their outer appearance becomes a 0:12:02.250 --> 0:12:04.510 manifestation of their inner hatred. 0:12:05.120 --> 0:12:05.580 Unquote. 0:12:06.679 --> 0:12:12.000 Super fascist stuff. Like, incredibly fascist. And the point by 0:12:12.080 --> 0:12:14.720 Kevin Ryok, the lawyer for one of the defendants, that 0:12:14.740 --> 0:12:21.329 the Trump administration has turned these fascistic sentiments into enforcement policy, 0:12:21.770 --> 0:12:26.620 like MSPM 7, is a really crucial point. Because these 0:12:26.650 --> 0:12:30.780 are not just personal sentiments held by Stephen Miller. These 0:12:30.840 --> 0:12:35.640 sentiments have been distilled into mandates to investigate and prosecute 0:12:36.059 --> 0:12:39.939 the political enemies of the Trump administration. Just four days 0:12:40.220 --> 0:12:45.360 after Border Patrol murdered Alex Preddy, Homeland Security Investigations opened 0:12:45.480 --> 0:12:49.400 a new investigation into anti-ICE protests in the Twin Cities 0:12:49.880 --> 0:12:56.310 called Operation Puppet Master. As in looking for the alleged 0:12:56.530 --> 0:13:01.690 puppet master orchestrating the spontaneous and community-led protests. Or I 0:13:01.730 --> 0:13:06.040 guess as in HSI is the puppet master infiltrating the 0:13:06.080 --> 0:13:12.250 protests with undercover agents puppeteered by DHS. Either way, DHS 0:13:12.290 --> 0:13:17.220 produced a report detailing the opening of Operation Puppet Master, 0:13:17.300 --> 0:13:21.120 and that report states, quote, This case is opened to 0:13:21.179 --> 0:13:26.939 document the integration of HSI undercover agents into groups, organizations, 0:13:27.160 --> 0:13:31.520 or other gatherings identified by intelligence information and other sources 0:13:31.840 --> 0:13:35.340 as potentially threatening to law enforcement personnel in the performance 0:13:35.420 --> 0:13:39.660 of their duties. The report by HSI Special Agent Jacob 0:13:39.679 --> 0:13:45.980 Marquis states, continues, quote, since November 28, 2026, I assume 0:13:46.240 --> 0:13:47.840 he means 2025. 0:13:47.840 --> 0:13:48.420 Great work, guys. 0:13:49.080 --> 0:13:52.720 Ongoing protests and incidents of civil unrest have occurred in 0:13:52.820 --> 0:13:57.680 public areas throughout Minneapolis, Minnesota. During these events, violent opportunists, 0:13:58.260 --> 0:14:02.200 or VOs, have exploited the protests as cover to attempt 0:14:02.340 --> 0:14:07.540 breaches of federal properties and perpetuated multiple assaults against federal 0:14:07.640 --> 0:14:12.550 officers tasked with protecting these facilities. Homeland Security Investigations of St. 0:14:12.590 --> 0:14:18.050 Paul has identified an organized network of conspirators operating through 0:14:18.250 --> 0:14:22.560 online and in-person who are providing material support to violent 0:14:22.640 --> 0:14:28.340 opportunists and agitators involved in impeding federal law enforcement, rioting, 0:14:28.500 --> 0:14:33.080 destruction of federal property, and assaults on federal agents and officers. 0:14:34.900 --> 0:14:38.430 This sentiment was also shared by U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen 0:14:38.610 --> 0:14:39.650 in that press conference. 0:14:40.250 --> 0:14:45.440 During Operation Metro Surge, Direct Action Minnesota infiltrated and exploited 0:14:45.500 --> 0:14:50.580 lawful protests to more efficiently carry out its unlawful direct actions. 0:14:51.180 --> 0:14:54.640 Despite the claims made by Rosen and in this HSI 0:14:54.680 --> 0:14:59.780 report of violent opportunists exploiting protests to perpetuate multiple assaults, 0:15:00.630 --> 0:15:05.410 In the defense's overview of these reports and documents, the 0:15:05.430 --> 0:15:09.510 defense lawyer notes that HSI does not actually identify any 0:15:09.610 --> 0:15:14.240 specific violent opportunists in this report, nor does it flag 0:15:14.420 --> 0:15:18.980 any specific incidents of rioting, destruction of property, or assaults 0:15:19.020 --> 0:15:22.060 on federal agents or officers. To quote the lawyer for 0:15:22.100 --> 0:15:26.760 the defense, the undercover surveillance initiated by Operation Puppet Master 0:15:26.950 --> 0:15:30.660 did not actually investigate or unearth any such instances, but 0:15:30.720 --> 0:15:35.550 instead encompassed all manner of privacy and constitutional violations against 0:15:35.630 --> 0:15:40.270 organizations and individuals who opposed ICE's activities in Minnesota, unquote. 0:15:40.850 --> 0:15:45.830 And in his press conference announcing the conspiracy charges, U.S. 0:15:45.870 --> 0:15:49.960 Attorney Daniel Rosen was asked multiple times whether any officers 0:15:50.650 --> 0:15:55.420 actually got hurt, and Rosen could not identify any instance 0:15:55.660 --> 0:15:56.680 of officer injury. 0:15:56.700 --> 0:15:58.840 We talked about coordinated attacks. 0:15:59.440 --> 0:16:02.380 What kind of injuries did officers sustain as part of 0:16:02.400 --> 0:16:03.370 these campaigns, if any? 0:16:03.410 --> 0:16:07.230 Can you elaborate on that? I can't elaborate on that today, 0:16:07.270 --> 0:16:09.050 and I don't believe I used the word attacks, but 0:16:09.590 --> 0:16:12.350 if I did, I stand by it. 0:16:13.370 --> 0:16:16.410 That really sums up this whole case for me. No, 0:16:16.490 --> 0:16:19.220 I can't provide any evidence to support the wild claims 0:16:19.280 --> 0:16:21.500 I'm making, and I don't think I used that word, 0:16:21.540 --> 0:16:24.500 but if I did, I stand by it. Incredible stuff. 0:16:25.330 --> 0:16:28.810 We will look into more of the Homeland Security Investigation 0:16:28.990 --> 0:16:43.870 case files after this at a break. Welcome back. The 0:16:44.090 --> 0:16:49.810 HSI report detailing the opening of Operation Puppet Master concludes 0:16:49.890 --> 0:16:54.310 by stating, quote, HSI St. Paul is actively conducting a 0:16:54.470 --> 0:16:58.390 thorough financial investigation to uncover the funding sources used by 0:16:58.450 --> 0:17:02.440 these groups and to detect any illicit transactions enabling further 0:17:02.500 --> 0:17:06.080 criminal acts. HSI St. Paul will use the results of 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:10.439 this financial investigation to identify those responsible, disrupt ongoing and 0:17:10.560 --> 0:17:15.490 future unlawful activities, and pursue prosecution of the individuals involved. 0:17:17.220 --> 0:17:21.850 And two weeks after the launching of Operation Puppet Master, 0:17:22.530 --> 0:17:28.470 HSI opened another investigation called Project Whipple Shield, specifically focusing 0:17:28.530 --> 0:17:33.250 on the identification of potential funding sources, the organizational structure, 0:17:33.650 --> 0:17:38.040 and the, quote, predicate actions behind these campaigns. To quote 0:17:38.080 --> 0:17:42.660 that HSI report, quote, this investigation is focused on identifying 0:17:42.680 --> 0:17:47.790 and disrupting sophisticated, organized campaigns supporting and engaging in this 0:17:47.869 --> 0:17:53.719 behavior and to prevent such unlawful activities. Regarding this investigation, 0:17:54.480 --> 0:17:58.419 lawyer for the defense Kevin Ryok wrote, As with Operation 0:17:58.440 --> 0:18:03.300 Puppet Master, HSI's investigation in Project Whipple Shield extended far 0:18:03.340 --> 0:18:07.119 beyond any potential threat to law enforcement safety. It concluded, 0:18:07.460 --> 0:18:11.700 with no evidence but obvious political animus, that numerous Twin 0:18:11.740 --> 0:18:16.290 Cities unions and non-profit organizations were involved in a widespread 0:18:16.330 --> 0:18:21.250 conspiracy to violate 18 U.S.C. 111, assaulting, resisting, or impeding 0:18:21.310 --> 0:18:25.830 certain officers or employees. And it surveilled and surreptitiously gathered 0:18:25.890 --> 0:18:29.540 financial records generated by these organizations, despite the lack of 0:18:29.700 --> 0:18:34.500 any clear connection between those organizations and criminal conduct, unquote. 0:18:35.380 --> 0:18:39.109 At that press conference announcing the indictment, U.S. Attorney Daniel 0:18:39.140 --> 0:18:43.910 Rosen said that Direct Action Minnesota is actually, quote, comprised 0:18:44.030 --> 0:18:48.450 of members of subgroups like the Black Cat Workers Collective, unquote. 0:18:49.250 --> 0:18:54.469 But the alleged quote-unquote subgroups extend far beyond just Black 0:18:54.609 --> 0:19:00.270 Cat Workers Collective, as evidenced by a little diagram that 0:19:00.310 --> 0:19:05.250 was presented to grand jurors for this indictment. This diagram 0:19:05.310 --> 0:19:07.859 is one of the funniest things I've ever seen. In 0:19:07.890 --> 0:19:17.800 the alleges is connected to the 15 defendants. But surrounding 0:19:17.859 --> 0:19:23.399 the DAM logo is logos for 15 other organizations, all 0:19:23.440 --> 0:19:29.030 with arrows pointing towards Direct Action Minnesota and text reading 0:19:29.330 --> 0:19:33.689 council member, as if all of these organizations are sending 0:19:34.130 --> 0:19:39.780 council members to Direct Action Minnesota to plan or orchestrate 0:19:39.890 --> 0:19:45.120 the direct action's in response to Operation Metro Surge. This 0:19:45.180 --> 0:19:47.590 diagram that was presented as a slide to grand jurors 0:19:48.150 --> 0:19:53.889 is titled The Conspiracy. and the conspiring organizations are listed 0:19:53.990 --> 0:19:57.730 as Monarcha Rapid Response Line, which is one of the 0:19:57.780 --> 0:20:02.000 rapid response networks in the Twin Cities. The other organizations 0:20:02.180 --> 0:20:09.119 in this diagram, going clockwise, include Minnesota 5150, the organizers 0:20:09.160 --> 0:20:14.120 of the No Kings protests, Minnesota Ice Watch, Minnesota Association 0:20:14.200 --> 0:20:18.659 of Professional Employees, a labor union, Minneapolis Federation of Educators, 0:20:18.780 --> 0:20:23.690 Local 59, Left Jab, a self-defense group, The Grease Pit, 0:20:23.950 --> 0:20:30.129 a bike shop, Democratic Socialists of America, Black Cat Workers Collective, AFL-CIO, Workers' 0:20:30.210 --> 0:20:36.320 Solidarity Circle, Whipple Watch, Veterans for Peace, Socialist Alternative, Showing 0:20:36.359 --> 0:20:41.750 Up for Racial Justice, SCIU 26, Red Pine Revolutionary Collective, 0:20:42.170 --> 0:20:47.520 and Ray Rainbolt Memorial Gun Club. HSI agent Desmond Garcia 0:20:48.119 --> 0:20:52.139 testified to the grand jury regarding this slide, quote, This 0:20:52.160 --> 0:20:54.960 is kind of a breakdown, like I mentioned earlier, with 0:20:55.040 --> 0:20:59.659 members of DAM being associated with other organizations. Through the 0:20:59.700 --> 0:21:03.149 course of the investigation, this is just a snapshot of 0:21:03.170 --> 0:21:06.650 some of the other organizations that members are affiliated with. 0:21:07.060 --> 0:21:11.300 that kind of comprise and make up Direct Action Minnesota, unquote. 0:21:12.040 --> 0:21:14.000 This is one of the funniest things I've ever seen 0:21:14.619 --> 0:21:19.209 and provides really, really useful insight into how HSI is 0:21:19.770 --> 0:21:25.890 imagining the organizational structure of these protests, that all these 0:21:25.930 --> 0:21:31.750 organizations are sending, quote-unquote, council members to this more secretive group, 0:21:31.869 --> 0:21:36.490 Direct Action Minnesota, that orchestrates the most radical parts of 0:21:36.550 --> 0:21:41.209 the anti-ICE protests. Regarding this diagram slide, the lawyer for 0:21:41.230 --> 0:21:44.730 the defense wrote, If any individual was connected to both 0:21:44.950 --> 0:21:48.669 DAM and any of these entities, the government considers the 0:21:48.780 --> 0:21:53.160 entities to be conspiring. Fueled by visions of this vast 0:21:53.220 --> 0:21:59.040 and irrational conspiracy, HSI surreptitiously obtained financial records of labor 0:21:59.160 --> 0:22:02.490 unions and non-profit organizations as a part of a quote-unquote, 0:22:02.609 --> 0:22:10.180 financial investigation into, quote, domestic terrorist financing, unquote. And let's 0:22:10.200 --> 0:22:14.300 go over the financial probe aspect of this investigation. One 0:22:14.340 --> 0:22:19.060 of the reports uncovered through Discovery revealed that HSI secretly 0:22:19.100 --> 0:22:23.780 subpoenaed three years' worth of financial records from SEIU, one 0:22:23.800 --> 0:22:26.980 of the biggest labor unions in the country, largely focused 0:22:27.050 --> 0:22:30.490 on organizing the healthcare, public service, and service work sector. 0:22:31.450 --> 0:22:34.800 Last March, HSI agents served an administrative summons, or an 0:22:34.990 --> 0:22:40.500 administrative subpoena, to Fedwire to obtain wire transfers involving SCIU. 0:22:41.300 --> 0:22:43.480 The wire transfers that the Federal Reserve Bank of New 0:22:43.520 --> 0:22:46.659 York gave over to DHS range from January 1, 2023 0:22:46.660 --> 0:22:47.820 to March 19, 2026. To quote the HSI report, quote, 0:22:54.690 --> 0:22:58.510 Beginning in December, HSI St. Paul began a multifaceted approach 0:22:58.530 --> 0:23:01.629 to identify and investigate individuals engaged in acts of violence, 0:23:01.650 --> 0:23:04.840 destruction of federal property, intimidation of federal officers and employees, 0:23:05.320 --> 0:23:09.240 and attempts to impede federal operations. Through this investigation, HSI St. 0:23:09.260 --> 0:23:12.100 Paul has identified a network of individuals operating online and 0:23:12.119 --> 0:23:14.640 in person who are engaged in this behavior by either 0:23:14.700 --> 0:23:21.109 directly participating or by providing support through fundraising, planning, and organization. 0:23:21.720 --> 0:23:26.740 The following report of investigation provides preliminary cursory details related 0:23:26.900 --> 0:23:30.550 to wire transfers from various financial institutions to and from 0:23:30.950 --> 0:23:35.750 Service Employees International Union, main financial institution, the U.S. Bank 0:23:35.869 --> 0:23:42.550 of Minneapolis, Minnesota, unquote. And what did this investigation find? Well, 0:23:43.030 --> 0:23:47.770 a quote-unquote preliminary analysis of the wire transfers, quote, revealed 0:23:47.890 --> 0:23:52.480 that the SEIU National Union has numerous wire transactions to 0:23:52.540 --> 0:23:56.800 and from SEIU local unions for various types of debits 0:23:57.060 --> 0:24:02.859 and credits to include annuity payments, strike payments, strike supplies, investments, 0:24:03.440 --> 0:24:09.070 union member dues, retiree dues, medical expenses, and pension fund expenses. 0:24:10.190 --> 0:24:13.310 So they found nothing. They just looked through three years 0:24:14.030 --> 0:24:18.930 of financial records from SEIU and only found regular transactions 0:24:18.990 --> 0:24:22.929 that a union would have. They found absolutely nothing. And 0:24:23.090 --> 0:24:27.790 this report ends with this incredible sentence, quote, this financial 0:24:27.890 --> 0:24:33.030 investigation involving protest domestic terrorist financing continues. 0:24:33.990 --> 0:24:34.550 Sure, dude. 0:24:34.570 --> 0:24:36.149 Yeah, I'm sure it's going to continue. I'm sure it's 0:24:36.170 --> 0:24:40.109 going to continue to find nothing. Because in the 95-page 0:24:40.130 --> 0:24:43.870 indictment against these 15 defendants, One of the frequently recurring 0:24:43.930 --> 0:24:46.810 topics in the overt acts in furtherance of the conspiracy 0:24:47.690 --> 0:24:51.090 is discussing how they don't have any money, how they're 0:24:51.250 --> 0:24:55.629 constantly trying to fundraise to help continue the anti-ICE protests. 0:24:56.330 --> 0:25:00.310 The indictment outlines them consistently struggling to pull together $ 5, 000. 0:25:00.190 --> 0:25:03.929 But yeah, sure, let me make a few calls to 0:25:03.950 --> 0:25:06.900 the SCIU real quick. I'm sure they'll just wire transfer 0:25:06.980 --> 0:25:09.800 over the money. And the other thing is that this 0:25:10.140 --> 0:25:14.700 three-year time span of the financial probe stretches way longer 0:25:14.960 --> 0:25:19.600 than Operation Metro Surge and the protests surrounding ICE activists 0:25:19.740 --> 0:25:22.760 in the Twin Cities. Because what's actually going on here, 0:25:22.859 --> 0:25:26.120 and to the Fed's own admission, is that they're just 0:25:26.160 --> 0:25:31.050 enacting NSPM 7, using whatever pretext they can concoct to 0:25:31.480 --> 0:25:34.890 dig through the finances of entities and organizations alike. that 0:25:34.950 --> 0:25:38.670 they view as political enemies. And it wasn't just SEIU. 0:25:39.450 --> 0:25:42.690 HSI also obtained three years worth of bank records for 0:25:42.710 --> 0:25:46.690 the Communication Workers of America, including donations and PAC spending. 0:25:47.170 --> 0:25:50.770 The CWA union represents thousands of journalists and print and 0:25:50.790 --> 0:25:54.209 broadcast news workers in the US and Canada. And as 0:25:54.270 --> 0:25:57.690 a part of this financial probe, HSI obtained records for 0:25:58.010 --> 0:26:01.150 one of the Canadian branches of this union, the International 0:26:01.190 --> 0:26:04.909 Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, with the administrative summons 0:26:05.109 --> 0:26:09.310 requesting information from the Bank of Montreal. This very same 0:26:09.510 --> 0:26:13.300 summons also demanded three years worth of financial records from 0:26:13.359 --> 0:26:16.940 the environmental activist organization Sunrise Movement and the Sunrise Movement 0:26:17.060 --> 0:26:20.340 Educational Fund. And as we will discuss, HSI was also 0:26:20.540 --> 0:26:25.680 actively surveilling Sunrise meetings in Minnesota. Now, HSI also subpoenaed 0:26:25.720 --> 0:26:28.460 financial records from at least one other entity that we 0:26:28.520 --> 0:26:32.590 know of, a local Minneapolis activist organization called Voices for 0:26:32.630 --> 0:26:36.740 Racial Justice, But rather than bank records and wire transfers, 0:26:36.960 --> 0:26:41.910 HSI went after PayPal and Venmo transactions. Voices for Racial 0:26:41.950 --> 0:26:45.570 Justice was founded in 1993 and describes itself as the 0:26:45.750 --> 0:26:50.510 longest-running racial justice organizing training organization in the state of Minnesota. 0:26:51.230 --> 0:26:55.080 The DHS investigative report regarding the subpoena into the organization 0:26:55.680 --> 0:26:59.560 says that the website for Voices of Racial Justice, quote, 0:27:00.140 --> 0:27:05.300 boasts several articles on ICE Out and or Truth, Freedom, 0:27:05.520 --> 0:27:09.460 and Ice Out of Minnesota. Their website also provides links 0:27:09.520 --> 0:27:14.660 to Defend the 612, Minneapolis St. Paul Whistles, and Monarcha 0:27:14.720 --> 0:27:19.990 Rapid Response for upcoming trainings, unquote. That's basically the entire 0:27:20.030 --> 0:27:24.990 justification DHS gives for probing into the donations and Venmo 0:27:25.090 --> 0:27:29.190 and PayPal records for this racial justice organization, that their 0:27:29.270 --> 0:27:36.030 website hosts links to other anti-ice organizations. Defense attorney Kevin 0:27:36.070 --> 0:27:40.389 Ryok wrote, quote, this broad coalition of financial records of 0:27:40.510 --> 0:27:45.109 labor and social justice advocacy organizations done in secret and 0:27:45.130 --> 0:27:49.109 with no articulable criminal predicate violates both the First Amendment 0:27:49.270 --> 0:27:52.890 and these organizations' right to financial privacy. It also reflects 0:27:53.010 --> 0:27:56.129 a sinister turn in our democracy when the party in 0:27:56.170 --> 0:28:00.179 power feels no compunction about peering into the private finances 0:28:00.320 --> 0:28:04.020 of its political opponents, collecting that information and and storing 0:28:04.080 --> 0:28:08.100 it away for further use. The lawyer also notes, quote, 0:28:08.660 --> 0:28:11.940 among other problems, the use of the administrative summons seems 0:28:11.980 --> 0:28:14.910 to violate the Right to Financial Privacy Act, which requires 0:28:14.950 --> 0:28:17.850 law enforcement to provide notice to the account holder if 0:28:17.869 --> 0:28:21.890 they are trying to obtain bank records via administrative subpoena. Here, 0:28:22.050 --> 0:28:25.409 not only did DHS hide these inquiries from the account holders, 0:28:26.170 --> 0:28:29.969 it told responding financial institutions, quote, you are requested not 0:28:29.990 --> 0:28:32.510 to disclose the existence of this summons for an indefinite 0:28:32.530 --> 0:28:35.510 period of time. Any such disclosure will impede the investigation 0:28:35.590 --> 0:28:38.870 and thereby interfere with the enforcement of federal law, unquote. 0:28:39.570 --> 0:28:42.600 Though the federal government would likely argue that HSI's use 0:28:42.680 --> 0:28:46.080 of the administrative subpoenas without notice would fall under some 0:28:46.100 --> 0:28:49.420 of the exceptions within the Right to Financial Privacy Act. 0:28:50.280 --> 0:28:53.480 Most reporting I've seen on this batch of discovery has 0:28:53.920 --> 0:28:57.880 focused on the financial probing of unions and activist organizations. 0:28:58.040 --> 0:29:00.930 And Yeah, that is a big deal. That is very 0:29:00.990 --> 0:29:04.600 serious and deserves a lot of focus. But most of 0:29:04.660 --> 0:29:09.260 the investigative reports released as a part of Discovery pertain 0:29:09.320 --> 0:29:15.440 to HSI undercover operations, surveillance and infiltration of anti-ice organizing 0:29:15.620 --> 0:29:18.290 in the Twin Cities. And there is a lot of 0:29:18.370 --> 0:29:22.630 interesting information in there that explains why the 90-something page 0:29:22.710 --> 0:29:26.330 indictment is like that, why it has transcriptions of so 0:29:26.370 --> 0:29:31.800 many regular in-person conversations, and text logs from Signal. To 0:29:31.840 --> 0:29:36.550 quote defense lawyer Kevin Ryok, undercover HSI agents posing as 0:29:36.610 --> 0:29:41.560 protesters or activists surveilled community meetings at church parks, libraries, 0:29:41.780 --> 0:29:46.640 union halls, schools, and restaurants. Undercover agents secretly made audio 0:29:46.800 --> 0:29:51.229