Minnesota Republican Drops Out of Governor's Race, Citing GOP Immigration Stance
In a surprising move, Minnesota Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Madel announced his withdrawal from the race on Monday, citing what he described as the party's "stated retribution" against citizens in his state. Madel, who is an attorney, expressed his opposition to the national Republicans' handling of immigration enforcement in Minnesota, specifically Operation Metro Surge.
Madel pointed to the operation's expansion beyond its original stated focus on public safety threats, citing instances where U.S. citizens were pulled over by ICE agents for pretextual stops. He also highlighted the case of Justice Department legal representation for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer Jonathan Ross, who fatally shot Renee Nicole Good earlier this month.
Madel's decision to drop out of the race comes as several Republicans in Congress have called for a full investigation into Alex Pretti's killing by Border Patrol agent. Sen. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska has demanded a prioritized and transparent investigation, while Sen. Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania and Rep. Max Miller of Ohio have urged a comprehensive inquiry.
The withdrawal marks some of the most pointed GOP backlash to date on the handling of Pretti's killing and raises questions about the party's stance on immigration enforcement in Minnesota. With several other Republicans still vying for the party's nomination, it remains to be seen whether Madel's departure will impact the race.
In a surprising move, Minnesota Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Madel announced his withdrawal from the race on Monday, citing what he described as the party's "stated retribution" against citizens in his state. Madel, who is an attorney, expressed his opposition to the national Republicans' handling of immigration enforcement in Minnesota, specifically Operation Metro Surge.
Madel pointed to the operation's expansion beyond its original stated focus on public safety threats, citing instances where U.S. citizens were pulled over by ICE agents for pretextual stops. He also highlighted the case of Justice Department legal representation for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer Jonathan Ross, who fatally shot Renee Nicole Good earlier this month.
Madel's decision to drop out of the race comes as several Republicans in Congress have called for a full investigation into Alex Pretti's killing by Border Patrol agent. Sen. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska has demanded a prioritized and transparent investigation, while Sen. Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania and Rep. Max Miller of Ohio have urged a comprehensive inquiry.
The withdrawal marks some of the most pointed GOP backlash to date on the handling of Pretti's killing and raises questions about the party's stance on immigration enforcement in Minnesota. With several other Republicans still vying for the party's nomination, it remains to be seen whether Madel's departure will impact the race.
. operation metro surge sounds like a total nightmare, i mean who lets u.s. citizens get pulled over by ice agents just for no reason? and now chris madel is outta the running because he called them out on it 
maybe his departure will be the wake-up call minnesota needs to rethink their stance on immigration
. I mean, come on, a GOP candidate drops out because they can't handle the heat? It's like they're trying to make their own party look bad by association. Operation Metro Surge is basically a disaster waiting to happen, and now we've got another Republican bailing because it's too hot for them to handle 
. I'm not surprised though, these politicians have been trying to sweep this under the rug for too long. It's like they're afraid of their own shadow. Anyway, this is just more proof that the GOP needs to get its priorities straight and stop playing politics with people's lives 
.
and now some repub is quitting because they don't agree with the party line on immigration... like, grow up guys 
. it's not that hard to find common ground and be reasonable about things. and now we got this whole thing with Alex Pretti's killing... 
i just want some answers and some sense 
.
. But seriously, how can one operation be causing that much drama for an entire state? And now he's saying the GOP isn't handling immigration right? Like dude, if you're so concerned about it, why are you a Republican in the first place 
. Anyway, this whole thing is just a big mess and I'm just over it 
. Can we please just talk about something else for once 
?
, so yeah, Madel making that move isn't really a shock to me. I'm curious to see how the other GOP candidates handle this situation now...
but idk, it seems like the GOP is still all over the place on this issue. 
i think what madel is saying is that the GOP's immigration stance in minnesota is too harsh, and he can't win a statewide election with that. 
. And now we got Chris Madel, a Republican, speaking out against it and getting booted out of the governor's race 
. I get where he's coming from, but still, you'd think the party would want to distance themselves from this kinda stuff at least a bit more 
. He's talking about how ICE agents are pulling over U.S. citizens for no reason and stuff like that. And it's like, fair point 
. What changed? Wasn't he on board with the party's stance on immigration before? 
. I don't know what to make of it either 
.
. Is Madel's decision to drop out really about his party's immigration stance, or is it something else entirely? 
.
But at the same time, I'm also a little concerned that he's dropping out of the race. Can't he just stick it to the man and run a hard campaign? 
I guess we'll just have to wait and see how this all plays out. Maybe his departure will spark more change from within the party... 
Fingers crossed, right? 
And what about all those other reps who are calling for an investigation into Alex Pretti's killing? Shouldn't they be more concerned with finding out what happened to Renee Nicole Good? 
. I think this move is kinda brave, even if he did say it was the "stated retribution" against citizens that made him drop out - still, not many people can do what he's done and just walk away from the party. The whole thing with Operation Metro Surge sounds super fishy to me 
what do you guys think? should we be surprised by the backlash or did we always know this was coming? 
. I hope this sparks some real change in the GOP's approach to immigration reform 
. Maybe it'll make them rethink their priorities and start putting people over politics 
what is happening with our country?!? like Minnesota Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Madel just dropped out because of this stuff... he said the party's handling of immigration enforcement in his state is a problem, but honestly it's not just him, it's like the whole party 
. Anyway, GOP is always so divided, some reps are literally begging for an investigation into Alex Pretti's killing 