🚨REPUBLICAN SUDDENLY QUITS in Minnesota…blames TRUMP!

What this episode is about

Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Madd has abruptly suspended his campaign in Minnesota, citing issues with the Trump administration's immigration enforcement tactics, particularly the Operation Metro Surge. He expressed his inability to support what he labeled a punitive approach against state citizens, stating that he cannot align with a party that facilitates such retribution, ultimately prioritizing his moral responsibility to his family over political ambitions.

Key takeaways

• When GOP candidates drop out, it’s not just strategy; it’s a warning that party lines are fraying.
• Chris Maddle’s exit signals Trump’s ICE tactics are no longer palatable, even among staunch Republicans.
• In Minnesota, citizenship papers became a badge of fear—signs of a party losing its grip on community values.
• Maddle's defense of ICE contradicts his departure—calling out retribution while aligning with its principles is a political paradox.
• Bipartisan misconduct is thriving; Maddle’s critique suggests that even blind loyalty has its limits in today's GOP.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Chris Madd (Guest) · 2 min speaking
• Mary (Guest) · 1 min speaking
• Danny (Host) · 1 min speaking
• Caroline (Guest) · 1 min speaking
• Ted (Guest) · 1 min speaking
• John (Guest) · 1 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 3:00: Minnesota, Chris Madd, Donald Trump, Operation Metro Surge
2. 3:00 – 6:00: Donald Trump, Minnesota, Alex Jeffrey Prey, Steven Miller
3. 6:00 – 9:00: Minnesota, Alex Jeffrey Prey, Steven Miller

Notable quotes from "🚨REPUBLICAN SUDDENLY QUITS in Minnesota…blames TRUMP!"

• Trump's ICE strategy in Minnesota is so bad that Republicans are just quitting races rather than defend it. Yeah, that seems like a huge problem for Trump heading into 2026. According to reports,.

  about Minnesota · at 0:08

• Condemning what he described as a campaign of quote retribution against Minnesota by federal authorities tied to the Trump administration and of course the surge of immigration…

  about Donald Trump · at 0:57

• To follow on Gab's question, Secretary Gnome said Alex Prey committed an act of domestic terrorism. Steven Miller labeled Freddy a domestic terrorist. Does the president agree with them?

  about Alex Jeffrey Prey · at 3:50

• Don't go in my closet and I don't have professionalgrade gas mask. And I think what frustrates people, you remember Kyle Writtenhouse and how he was made a hero on the right. I…

  about Kyle Rittenhouse · at 6:15

• Steven Miller saying, An assassin tried to murder federal agents and this is your response. and JD Vance retweeting it says something about what where this administration is and how they're.

  about Steven Miller · at 7:10

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Donald Trump — Person · Referenced political figure / administration leader · 4 mentions · first at 0:08
  Presented as the political driver behind the ICE enforcement surge in Minnesota and the resulting backlash; framed as a liability for Republicans in the state.
• Chris Madd — Person · Referenced candidate / main quoted speaker (dropout announcement) · 3 mentions · first at 0:00
  A Republican Minnesota governor candidate (named as Chris Madd/Maddle/Mattal in the transcript) who ends his campaign while condemning ICE tactics and alleged 'retribution' politics, used as evidence of intra-party backlash.
  A Republican candidate for Minnesota Governor Chris Madd just announced that he is ending his campaign. Here's why.
• Alex Jeffrey Prey — Person · Referenced victim / subject of controversy · 2 mentions · first at 3:52
  Described as an ICU nurse killed during an ICE-related incident; cited in questions and commentary about officials labeling him a 'domestic terrorist' and about firearm carry at protests.
• Steven Miller — Person · Referenced administration official / commentator · 2 mentions · first at 3:53
  Cited as labeling an individual a 'domestic terrorist' and later quoted framing the incident as an attempted assassination of federal agents, illustrating escalatory rhetoric around the Minnesota enforcement events.
• Kyle Rittenhouse — Person · Referenced comparison case / political symbol · 4 mentions
  Used as a rhetorical comparison about firearms at protests and perceived double standards in how the right treats armed individuals in protest settings.
• Tom Holman — Person · Referenced enforcement official / 'border czar' figure · 1 mention · first at 3:39
  Presented as being dispatched to Minnesota as part of the Trump administration’s response/escalation around immigration enforcement operations.
  Trump also decided to dispatch Border Caesar Tom Holman in Minnesota in replace of Gremlin Bavino or whatever his name is. Pretty telling, right?
• Renee Mlin Good — Person · Referenced victim in prior case (used to characterize candidate) · 1 mention · first at 3:13
  Mentioned to underscore that Chris Madd is not 'soft' on law enforcement/immigration issues, noting he provided legal counsel to an officer who shot her.
  This, he's not a fair weather immigration guy. this Republican. He is a guy who offered legal counsel to the officer who shot Renee Good.

Concepts & topics

• Operation Metro Surge — Concept · Core topic · 2 mentions · first at 0:32
  A controversial immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota that has expanded beyond its original scope, leading to political fallout.
  And well, he didn't do it quietly either. I support the originally stated goals of Immigrations and Customs Enforcements Operation Metro Surge in locating and deporting the worst of the worst from our state. Operation Metro.

Places & events

• Minnesota — Place · Setting · 8 mentions · first at 0:00
  The primary location where the discussed political and immigration enforcement events are taking place.

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 A Republican candidate for Minnesota Governor Chris Madd just announced that he is ending his campaign. Here's why.

0:08 Trump's ICE strategy in Minnesota is so bad that Republicans are just quitting races rather than defend it. Yeah, that seems like a huge problem for Trump heading into 2026. According to reports, attorney Chris Maddle dropped out of the Republican race for Minnesota governor. And well, he didn't do it quietly either. I support the originally stated goals of Immigrations and Customs Enforcements Operation Metro Surge in locating and deporting the worst of the worst from our state. Operation Metro Surge has expanded far beyond its stated focus on true public safety threats.

0:43 United States citizens are carrying papers to prove their citizenship. That's wrong. At the end of the day, I have to look my daughters in the eye and tell them I believe I did what was right. And I am doing that today. He quit while condemning what he described as a campaign of quote retribution against Minnesota by federal authorities tied to the Trump administration and of course the surge of immigration enforcement in the state. That's yeah that's that's not a normal campaign announcement or development to say the least. That is a Republican candidate looking at the current political landscape and basically saying screw this and these people they're out of control. Today I announce the end of my campaign.

1:28 I have two primary reasons for this decision. Number one, I cannot support the national Republican stated retribution on the citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so. I support the originally stated goals of Immigrations and Customs Enforcements Operation Metro Surge in locating and deporting the worst of the worst from our state. And I've seen many examples of ICE arresting non- US citizens in Minnesota convicted of serious crimes, including murder, rape, and child sexual assault. No reasonable person should want these people here, and I am glad that they are gone.

2:09 But Operation Metro Search has expanded far beyond its stated focus on true public safety threats. United States citizens, particularly those of color, live in fear. United States citizens are carrying papers to prove their citizenship. That's wrong. ICE has authorized its agents to raid homes using a civil warrant that need only be signed by a border patrol agent. That's unconstitutional and it's wrong. Weaponizing criminal investigations against political opponents is unconstitutional regardless of who is in power. Republicans and Democrats alike have engaged in this misconduct and both must be held to the same standard. They need to do better.

2:57 The second reason Mattal gave for dropping out was that he says national Republicans have made it impossible impossible for a Republican to win in Minnesota. And again, just to underscore this, he's not a fair weather immigration guy. this Republican. He is a guy who offered legal counsel to the officer who shot Renee Good.

3:18 And also before Republicans claim this is just an outsider or nobody, he wasn't a fringe candidate at all. According to the Minnesota Star Tribune, Mel had consistently finished in the top three in straw polls. This comes amid increased tensions in Minnesota with Trump revamping his eye strategy in the wake of yet another deadly shooting. Trump also decided to dispatch Border Caesar Tom Holman in Minnesota in replace of Gremlin Bavino or whatever his name is. Pretty telling, right?

3:49 Mary, thanks. Uh to follow on Gab's question, Secretary Gnome said Alex Prey committed an act of domestic terrorism. Steven Miller labeled Freddy a domestic terrorist. Does the president agree with them?

3:59 Look, as I've said, I have not heard the president characterize Mr. Prey in that way. Uh however, I have heard the president say he wants to let the facts in the investigation lead itself. Was he alarmed to hear his top officials referring to him in that way, rushing to that judge?

4:12 Danny, go ahead. Thanks, Caroline. And the key takeaway from this is basically that this isn't Democrats saying Trump is a liability. This is a Republican candidate acting like Trump is a liability. Not to mention this also coincides with the notable shift that we've seen this week on Trump's favorite news channel, Fox News. But, uh, you know, the the question I've asked a number of times today, Ted, is who goes to a protest and brings a gun? I mean, was he not asking for some kind of trouble in that situation?

4:45 No, I I really don't think so, John. Look, I've been on this channel on numerous occasions where we talk about the Second Amendment and the right to carry firearms, and I've known people to go to demonstrations before in the past and to have firearms with them. or he didn't do anything with that firearm. That man is dead and there's a question mark as to whether he should have been killed under these circumstances.

5:12 Another individual is dead at the hands of Border Patrol. Let's be clear, we do not know if there was any push back from this individual who was armed. We do not have evidence that he was waving a gun, doing anything to threaten Border Patrol. He had his phone and he was shooting he he was uh viewing and recording the incident. That's what he was doing, recording the incident.

5:41 What is your reaction? And you are an elected official. What can you do about it?

5:45 Where hosts just couldn't stomach the picture the Trump administration was trying to portray of the most recent deadly shooting resulting in the death of ICU nurse Alex pretty at the hands of ICE agents. like that. And by the way, don't let the left kid you with this that this is just a normal protest where people are peacefully protesting. No, it's not. Peaceful protesters don't have 9 mm weapons with two extra magazines. Peaceful protesters, I don't know about you, but I'm sure the same as me. I don't go in my closet and I don't have professionalgrade gas mask. And I think what frustrates people, you remember Kyle Writtenhouse and how he was made a hero on the right. I am sure there are people on the conservative side who are saying, "Wait a minute. You mean you can't take a firearm to a protest? Cuz you were just celebrating the guy for doing it a couple of years ago. Alex Py's firearm was lawfully being carried.

6:44 It's a It's lawful to carry a gun in Minnesota. He never brandish it. He didn't point it at the cops." You see, Trump's ICE surge in Minnesota was positioned as this show of strength to reinstill law and order, but it's become a spiral of violence, backlash, and clearly political damage.

7:04 And the president, have you seen the body cam video? I was unaware you had. You know what? It's going to exonerate all the agents. You're completely right. Steven Miller saying, "An assassin tried to murder federal agents and this is your response." and JD Vance retweeting it says something about what where this administration is and how they're considering it before and after the murder of Alex Patty. And this will go down in history as a turning point for this. Greg Bavino wouldn't be leaving tomorrow if an innocent person wasn't killed. And the double standards that are being employed for how you have to behave versus how these agents have to behave is mind-boggling to me. Kyle Writtenhouse was a conservative hero, right, for walking into a protest, actually brandishing a weapon. But this guy who had a legal permit to carry and already had had his gun removed to some people, I guess, is some sort of

7:51 instigator when he was actually going to help a woman who had been pushed down and teargassed by ICE. We have the right to protest. That should be upheld and respected. And it is not being said, did you call for

8:04 Looks very untrained. It looks unprofessional. It looks very chaotic. it doesn't look like there's clear teamwork tactically to achieve uh the same objective. Um and it's it's just it is absolutely not how we train law enforcement in Minnesota. And I think the the greater issue, the greater concern is, you know, people should be able to have an expectation that the federal government can enforce federal immigration law without these, you know, poor tactics and and really unconstitutional practices. Recently, as the last two weeks, we as law enforcement community have been se receiving endless complaints about civil rights violations in our streets from US citizens.

8:50 What we're hearing is they're being stopped in traffic stops or on the street with no cause and being forced to demand paperwork to determine if they are here legally. As this went on over the ca past two weeks, we started hearing from our police officers the same complaints as they fell victim to this while off duty. Every one of these individuals is a person of color who has had this happen to them in Brooklyn Park. One particular officer that shared her story with me was stopped as she passed ICE going down the roadway.

9:29 When they boxed her in, they demanded her paperwork, of which she's a US citizen and clearly would not have any paperwork. When she became concerned about the rhetoric and the way she was being treated, she pulled out her phone and in an attempt to uh record the incident, the phone was knocked out of her hands um prevented her from recording it. The officer had their guns drawn during this interaction and after the officer became so concerned, they were forced to identify themselves as a Brooklyn Park police officer in hopes of slowing the incident and deescalating the incident down. The agents then immediately left after hearing this, making no other comments, no other apologies, just got in their vehicles and left. I wish I could tell you that this was an isolated incident.

10:15 In fact, many of the chiefs standing behind me have similar incidents with their offduty officers. This isn't just important because it happened to offduty police officers. But what it did do is we know that our officers know what the constitution is. They know what right and wrong is. And they know when people are being targeted, and that's what they were. If it is happening to our officers, it pains me to think how many of our community members are falling victim to this every day. It has to stop.

10:46 So severe that even Republican candidates are quitting rather than be tied to it. And well, Fox News can't spin it in Trump's favor.

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Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "🚨REPUBLICAN SUDDENLY QUITS in Minnesota…blames TRUMP!"?

Chris Madd (Guest), Mary (Guest), Danny (Host), Caroline (Guest), Ted (Guest), John (Guest).

What is "🚨REPUBLICAN SUDDENLY QUITS in Minnesota…blames TRUMP!" about?

Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Madd has abruptly suspended his campaign in Minnesota, citing issues with the Trump administration's immigration enforcement tactics, particularly the Operation Metro Surge. He expressed his inability to support what he labeled a punitive approach against state citizens, stating that he cannot align with a party that facilitates such retribution,…

What is mentioned in this MeidasTouch episode?

9 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Donald Trump, Operation Metro Surge, Minnesota, Chris Madd, Alex Jeffrey Prey, Steven Miller. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "🚨REPUBLICAN SUDDENLY QUITS in Minnesota…blames TRUMP!"?

The episode runs 11 min; the transcript is about 1,857 words in 23 timestamped sections.

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