DOJ Sues Gov. Walz Over Program Favoring Illegal Immigrants Over Citizens
The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the state of Minnesota and Democratic Governor Tim Walz over a program designed to offer financial aid to illegal immigrants pursuing higher education.
The DOJ had previously blocked a similar initiative in Texas by threatening legal action and has already moved forward with a related lawsuit in Kentucky, The Blaze reported on Friday.
“No state can be allowed to treat Americans like second-class citizens in their own country by offering financial benefits to illegal aliens,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement regarding the Minnesota lawsuit.
“The Department of Justice just won on this exact issue in Texas, and we look forward to taking this fight to Minnesota in order to protect the rights of American citizens first,” she added.
According to Politico, illegal immigrants in Minnesota are eligible for in-state tuition rates and state financial aid under the Minnesota Dream Act, which was enacted in 2013 under a previous Democratic governor.
The DOJ lawsuit claims that the program discriminates against U.S. citizens, the outlet noted further. “The magnitude of this discrimination against U.S. citizens is substantial,” said a statement from the DOJ. “The cost of tuition for resident students is significantly lower than for U.S. citizens that are not in-state residents.”
The lawsuit also names the Minnesota Office of Higher Education and State Attorney General Keith Ellison as defendants. It follows an executive order issued by President Donald Trump in April, directing federal agencies to identify and eliminate “laws, regulations, policies, and practices” that favor illegal immigrants over U.S. citizens.
Walz, who served as the Democratic vice-presidential nominee in the party’s unsuccessful 2024 campaign, has since stated that the country “was not ready” for the message he and his running mate were promoting, The Blaze
said.
Meanwhile, Bondi celebrated a pair of historic wins at the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday.
“Today, the Supreme Court instructed district courts to STOP the endless barrage of nationwide injunctions against President Trump. This would not have been possible without tireless work from our excellent lawyers @TheJusticeDept and our Solicitor General John Sauer. This Department of Justice will continue to zealously defend @POTUS’s policies and his authority to implement them,” Bondi wrote on X.
The high court shut down federal judges’ ability to prevent executive acts throughout the country via nationwide injunctions.
The court’s 6-3 decision, with all six GOP-appointed justices in the majority, is a significant setback for those pursuing legal challenges to Trump’s executive orders and other actions, many of which have been blocked or put on hold by lower district courts.
Nationwide injunctions prohibit the government from enforcing a law, rule, or policy across the United States, not simply against the individual parties engaged in the litigation or in the districts where they are granted.
The ban on nationwide injunctions in most cases was issued in regards to Trump’s early executive order blocking birthright citizenship. The Federalist’s Margot Cleveland explained: “The US Supreme Court allows Trump’s executive order restricting birthright citizenship to go into effect in some areas of the country for now by curtailing federal judges’ ability to block the president’s policies nationwide.”
On Friday, following the ruling, Bondi said that the Supreme Court would likely decide the birthright citizenship issue once and for all during their next session, which begins in October. The justices
heard oral arguments in the case in May after three lower federal courts had issued nationwide injunctions against the order’s implementation.
In his order, Trump declared that the 14th Amendment provision granting U.S. citizenship to children born on American soil applies only to those with at least one parent who is a citizen or permanent resident.
If it were to be implemented, Trump’s policy would deny citizenship at birth to an estimated 255,000 babies born annually in the U.S. to illegal immigrants or temporary visa holders, according to the Migration Policy Institute.
Trump Warns Iran of ‘Total Obliteration’ if They Try To Harm Him HH
President Donald Trump warned Iran that continued assassination threats made by leaders in Tehran would be met with the country getting “blown up” and “total obliteration.”
“Well, they shouldn’t be doing it but I’ve left notification,” Trump said. “Anything ever happens, we’re going to blow the whole — the whole country’s going to get blown up.”
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Biden-era Intelligence officials briefed Trump about the alleged threats against him during his presidential campaign in 2024. Former Attorney General Merrick Garland said the plot was retaliation for the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani by the U.S. in 2020, during Trump’s first administration.
Despite being briefed by his administration, Trump on Tuesday said President Biden “should have said something” on the matter, adding that presidents should defend each other on such matters.
“But I have very firm instructions,” Trump continued. “Anything happens, they’re going to wipe them off the face of this earth.”
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Trump also spoke about the ongoing negotiations between the United States and Iran in Geneva.
“What are you expecting from these Iran talks in Geneva?” a reporter asked Trump aboard Air Force One.
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“So, I’ll be involved in those talks indirectly, and they’ll be very important. We’ll see what can happen. Typically, Iran’s a very tough negotiator; they’re good negotiators — or bad negotiators. I would say they’re bad negotiators because we could have had a deal instead of sending the B2s to knock out their nuclear potential. We had to send the B2s. I hope they’re going to be more reasonable. They want to make a deal,” Trump said.
“Have you been told that a deal is next to impossible?” the reporter followed up.
Trump replied, “No. I think they want to make a deal. I don’t think they want the consequences of not making a deal. They want to make a deal.”
WATCH:
Trump previously said that he instructed officials to destroy Iran if they killed him.
The president said this after signing an executive order right after taking office that gave him all the tools he needed to talk to Iran’s government and put as much pressure on Tehran as possible.
“They haven’t done that and that would be a terrible thing for them to do,” Trump said at the time. “Not because of me — if they did that, they would be obliterated. That would be the end. I’ve left instructions, if they do it, they get obliterated, there won’t be anything left. And, they shouldn’t be able to do it.”
Trump warned last week that the United States could send additional warships toward Iran if ongoing diplomatic negotiations fail to produce a deal, signaling that military pressure could increase as talks over Tehran’s nuclear program stall.
In remarks to Axios, Trump said the administration is considering deploying a second aircraft carrier strike group to the region in addition to the USS Abraham Lincoln and 9 additional warships already positioned near Iran, though he expressed hope that a diplomatic agreement can still be reached.
“Either we will make a deal or we will have to do something very tough like last time,” the president told Axios on Tuesday, a reference to the bombing of three Iranian nuclear sites in June.
“Last time they didn’t believe I would do it. They overplayed their hand,” Trump added. “We have an armada that is heading there and another one might be going.”
The president emphasized that the United States is seeking to persuade Iran to curb its nuclear ambitions, halt the development of its ballistic missile program, and end support for militant proxy groups. Iranian officials have so far resisted expanding negotiations beyond nuclear-related issues.
He described the nuclear issue as a “matter of course” part of any negotiation, but also insisted that an agreement with Iran must also address Tehran’s ballistic missile stockpiles, per Axios.
Trump said the US “can make a great deal with Iran,” and Tehran “very much wants to make a deal.”
Trump’s comments came ahead of a planned visit to Washington, D.C. by Benjamin Netanyahu, who is expected to press for a tougher U.S. stance and broader terms for any Iran deal that would include constraints on Tehran’s missile capabilities and regional activities.
Before heading to DC, the Israeli leader previewed some of what he and Trump were going to discuss.
“I will present to the president our understanding of the principles of the negotiations (with Iran) – the essential principles that are important not only to Israel – but to everyone who wants peace and security in the Middle East,” Netanyahu told reporters, per the New York Post.
The administration has already bolstered its military presence in the Middle East, with multiple warships and aircraft deployed as a means of deterrence and leverage.
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