By Siddharth Cavale and Ross Kerber
NEW YORK, Jan 26 (Reuters) – After weeks of silence, corporate executives in the past 24 hours have spoken up about the heavy immigration enforcement actions in Minnesota after federal agents shot and killed a protester in Minneapolis over the weekend, the second such shooting this month.
The comments – including a signed statement from more than 60 Minnesota-based CEOs and a video from Target’s incoming chief executive – do not levy criticism at President Donald Trump or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but show how the broader public is turning against the administration’s actions.
Businesses have been reticent to criticize Trump during his second term. Since the outset of “Operation Metro Surge” in Minneapolis in December, major Minnesota corporations have been largely silent on the effects of immigration enforcement efforts on the city, a liberal Midwestern stronghold as well as a major corporate hub.
The shooting of Alex Pretti on Saturday – and comments from the Trump administration labeling the 37-year-old nurse a “domestic terrorist” with an intent to harm law enforcement – appeared to mark a sea change. On Sunday, more than 60 CEOs, including the leaders of 3M, UnitedHealth Group and General Mills, released a statement calling for de-escalation.
“Even though I wish the letter was stronger, I think it’s an important signal that Operation Metro Surge is losing its social acceptance,” said Jamie Long, a top-ranked Democratic leader in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
Several Minnesota companies have been working with the Washington-based lobbying group the Business Roundtable to defuse the situation, sources familiar with the efforts told Reuters. In a statement, the Business Roundtable said it supported the calls by those leaders to “de-escalate the situation in Minneapolis.”
In signs of a possible thaw, Trump and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz spoke Monday about reducing tensions.
Trump has argued the militarized operations are necessary to remove criminals from the U.S., but many of those arrested were picked up solely for possible civil immigration violations – the legal equivalent to a traffic violation.
CEOs of Minnesota-based companies are planning additional meetings this week with federal officials to discuss what a resolution would look like, said a source familiar with the matter, who was not authorized to speak with media. He said the meetings have taken on more urgency and importance since the killing of Pretti.
TARGET WEIGHS IN
Incoming Target CEO Michael Fiddelke weighed in with a video to employees on Monday “as a leader of this hometown company” to acknowledge how the activity was affecting Target and the city. Neither the video nor the CEO letter, which he also signed, mentioned Trump, ICE, Pretti or Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother who was fatally shot by an immigration agent in Minneapolis on January 7.
“The violence and loss of life in our community is incredibly painful. What’s happening affects us not just as a company, but as people, as neighbors, friends and family members within Target,” Fiddelke said in the video, the transcript of which was shared with Reuters.
Target has faced protests after an incident at a store in a Minneapolis suburb, where two U.S. citizens were detained, including a 17-year-old employee, and separately for allowing ICE agents to use its parking lots and bathrooms.
State lawmakers say they have urged business leaders to speak out. Long said he spoke with representatives from “at least four or five” big companies, and said executives told him ICE’s actions have hurt sales, but that until now they have been afraid to speak up.
That stood in contrast to numerous small businesses displaying “no ICE” signs and souring public mood. Trump’s rating on immigration fell to a record low of 39% in the most recent Reuters poll.
“I think they realized their silence was no longer acceptable. I think they understand the harm this is doing to our state and the public,” Long said.
GOOD FAVOR
Business leaders have cozied up to the White House in hopes of avoiding conflict with Trump, who is not shy about attacking corporate titans from Intel to Walmart to JPMorgan, most recently filing a $5 billion lawsuit against the latter and its chief executive Jamie Dimon.
Even with the recent remarks, leading business executives are still trying to stay in good favor with Trump. On the same day of Pretti’s shooting, several executives attended a private White House screening of a new film documenting the life of first lady Melania Trump, including Amazon’s CEO, Andy Jassy, and General Electric CEO Larry Culp.
“Some business leaders, of course, are showing more courage—but it takes coordinated, collective action to stand up for good government values,” said Cary Coglianese, professor of law and political science at the University of Pennsylvania. “We’re likely to need to see a rallying or cascading of opposition, so that it lowers the costs of being seen as opposing the administration.”
(Reporting by Siddharth Cavale in New York and Ross Kerber in Boston; Additional reporting by Anhata Rooprai in Bengaluru and Jessica DiNapoli in New York; Editing by David Gaffen and Matthew Lewis)
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