President Donald Trump praised a “highly respected Minnesota judge” on Thursday after she declined to issue a restraining order against Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in the Democrat-run state.

On Wednesday, Kate Menendez, a Biden-appointed U.S. District Court judge, rejected Minnesota’s request to temporarily block ICE from continuing immigration enforcement operations in the state as Minnesota’s lawsuit against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement moves forward.

“A highly respected judge declined to block I.C.E. operations in the very politically corrupt State of Minnesota. I.C.E. will therefore be allowed to continue its highly successful operation of removing some of the most violent and vicious criminals anywhere in the World, many of them murderers, from the State,” Trump said. “The great patriots of Law Enforcement will continue to make our Country safe. RECORD LOW CRIME NUMBERS!!!”

Menendez said her decision did not indicate how she would ultimately rule on Minnesota’s lawsuit against the federal government, CBS News reported.

“I think the issues are really important and I don’t want to suggest by not acting immediately one way or the other that I think they are unimportant,” Menendez said. “To the contrary, I understand this is important to everybody.”

Minnesota argued that a two-week restraining order was needed to give the state time to prepare for the case, arguing that the 3,000 federal agents in Minneapolis and the surrounding areas are violating citizens’ rights.

The federal government must respond to Minnesota’s lawsuit by January 19, and Judge Menendez denied a federal prosecutor’s request to postpone the date due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Menendez said the case was too urgent to delay.

Leftist Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced on Monday that the state filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in an effort to stop its surge of federal agents into the state. Ellison described Trump’s immigration operation in Minnesota as an “invasion.” The lawsuit was filed just days after Minneapolis resident Renee Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent after she drove her vehicle toward him during a confrontation. The shooting death has sparked massive protests, which have continued for more than a week, and the Trump administration has deployed more federal agents to the city.

Another ICE shooting on Wednesday night sparked more outrage in Minneapolis. A federal agent was ambushed and attacked by three people while attempting to detain a suspected Venezuelan illegal immigrant in the city’s Northside, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Trump also threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act on Thursday as demonstrations continued.

“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,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Thank you for you [sic] attention to this matter!”

LIVE UPDATES: Minnesota Dems Angry After Second ICE Shooting, Protesters Throw Fireworks At Police

A Trump-hating American Indian tribe with a powerful lobbying arm has wielded its influence to push California Attorney General Rob Bonta to issue a controversial ban on fantasy sports betting, a watchdog group said.

In the months leading up to Bonta’s decision to ban fantasy sports betting in California, the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians repeatedly lobbied his office. And in the days leading up to the ban, one prominent tribe member boasted that they were “coming for” fantasy sports betting companies and “we’re bringing our friends.”

The lobbying was flagged in a memo shared with The Daily Wire by the American Accountability Foundation, a conservative watchdog group founded by former Republican congressional staffer Tom Jones. 

“Since 2001, Pechanga has contributed almost $120 million to political causes, most notably on ballot measures and powerful political figures like Attorney General Rob Bonta,” the memo said. “In return for their money, Bonta has acquiesced to tribal demands, even going as far as declaring fantasy sports websites illegal in California.”

Lobbying reports compiled by the American Accountability Foundation show that Pechanga has spent over $1.8 million on political lobbying since Bonta took office in April 2021. In every single lobbying report filed by Pechanga, Bonta’s office was listed as one of the targets. The reports did not disclose the purpose of the lobbying or the specific amount directed toward Bonta’s office. 

Listed on the lobbying reports was Chief Mark Macarro, who has given thousands of dollars to Democratic candidates and has been pictured aboard Air Force One with former President Joe Biden.

After being asked by State Assemblyman Tom Lackey to issue a legal opinion on fantasy sports betting, Bonta vowed not to take money from the industry’s supporters; he did not do so for its opponents. The opinion was first requested by Senator Scott Wilk, and Lackey had no position on the final call, his office said. 

Bonta’s office previously maintained that the money did not impact his decision. 

“The donors were not parties to the opinion — they neither requested it nor were its subject,” spokesman Dan Newman told POLITICO. “They simply expressed a point of view, and of course an elected official cannot reject support from everyone who holds an opinion on their work.”

However, prominent members of the Pechanga tribe appeared to take credit for the opinion and celebrated it. Victor Rocha, a member of the Pechanga and an official with the Indian Gaming Association, told the Capital Weekly that the tribes had requested an opinion on fantasy sports betting. “You have to fight ‘em or you’ll get rolled over,” he said. 

Two days before Bonta’s opinion was issued on July 3, Rocha posted on X that daily fantasy sports companies were in trouble. 

“We’re coming for you, and we’re bringing our friends. Politically speaking, there are many ways to skin a rat,” he wrote. 

On the day the opinion was issued, Rocha posted a meme depicting a person labeled “California tribes” posing in front of a grave of a fantasy sports betting company. The meme was captioned, “Just saw the California AG’s opinion.”

Just saw the California AG’s opinion. pic.twitter.com/Poa02j1zMq

— Victor Rocha (@VictorRocha1) July 3, 2025

Jones said that the ruling and donations were not a “coincidence.” 

“When a single tribe and its allies spend over $400,000 into an attorney general’s campaigns, spend nearly $2 million on lobbying which includes his office, and then walk away with favorable legal rulings, that is not a coincidence,” Jones told The Daily Wire. “It is a glaring conflict of interest that reeks of corruption. Pechanga’s political power in California is dangerous, and the money trail to Rob Bonta is clear.” 

Throughout his political career as both attorney general and state assemblyman, Bonta has received $400,000 from the Pechanga and other tribes. In fact, both Bonta and his wife have also been the recipients of tens of thousands in political donations over the years, according to donor records compiled by the American Accountability Foundation. 

As noted by the watchdog group, Pechanga and its employees have given $49,800 to Bonta since his political career began in 2013 as a member of the California State Assembly. Mia Bonta, his wife, has also received $34,500 since 2021. She was elected to the assembly in 2021. 

Since 2001, Pechanga and its employees have contributed $117,089,903 to political causes. 

American Accountability Foundation.

At the same time, it has raked in tens of millions of taxpayer dollars, all while operating a lucrative casino. Since 2008, the tribe — which has around 1,823 members — has taken over $13.4 million in grants from the Department of Health and Human Services, around $6.9 million from the Environmental Protection Agency, $2.4 million from the Department of the Interior, $2.2 million from the Justice Department, and hundreds of thousands more from the Departments of Energy, Homeland Security, and others.

At the same time, it has taken legal action against those critical of the tribe. In November, it issued a cease-and-desist letter to the makers of a documentary called “You’re No Indian.” 

The documentary highlights allegations from former tribal members who say they were kicked out of their tribe to boost the casino profits shared with other members. Back in 2012, it was reported that the average casino profit per month for Pechanga members jumped to $30,000 per month after 250 people were kicked out. 

The tribe said that the film contained “numerous inaccuracies” when explaining why the cease-and-desist letter was sent. The film’s director, Ryan Flynn, gave a different story. 

“We interviewed families, reviewed records, spoke with experts,” Flynn said. “We reached out to Chairman Macarro multiple times during production. Mark had every opportunity to participate, and he chose not to.”

The film screened last weekend at three sold out theaters in Temecula, California, where the Pechanga tribe is located.

The American Accountability Foundation said that the letter was an effort to “stifle” free speech. 

Jones previously told The Daily Wire that Pechanga should lose its taxpayer funding over its political activism. 

“Taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to bankroll the Pechanga tribe’s lavish lifestyles and radical views, especially when individual tribe members are raking in tens of thousands a month from casino profits. That’s not an ‘impoverished community,’ it’s a corrupt one,” Jones said. “Time to shut the spigot off and stop subsidizing them!”