After immigration officials sent hundreds of officers into the streets in Minnesota, New Orleans, Memphis and Maine, Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee said his office is coordinating with public safety officials to prepare in case the state suddenly becomes ICE’s next target.
“What’s happening in Minnesota, (in) Minneapolis, is disgraceful,” McKee said, “where you’re using federal government assets …. and really not allowing people peaceful demonstrations.”
McKee said he’s spoken with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz – one of a number of Democratic officials there facing U.S. Department of Justice subpoenas – and offered his help.
“My God, I could be the next governor that has a DOJ situation,” McKee said during a Statehouse interview Thursday with Ocean State Media.
While there is no indication ICE plans to ramp up its activity in Rhode Island, the agency launched an operation this week in Maine.
McKee said his office is coordinating communication with public safety officials, including State Police, municipal police and the National Guard, “to discuss strategies based on different scenarios.”
“We’re going to prepare for every possibility,” the governor said, “and then if those possibilities come in, we’ll have a plan to actually act to make sure that we’re keeping the people in the state of Rhode Island safe.”
McKee, 74, is seen as having a tough path to re-election. With a Sept. 8 primary against Helena Foulkes on the horizon, he’s stepped up his criticism of President Trump and his policies in recent months.
The governor spoke in the State Room, surrounded by oversized portraits of Revolutionary War heroes, including George Washington and Nathanael Greene.
McKee accused ICE of racial profiling in Minnesota and said the state will not take a soft approach if Rhode Islanders’ constitutional rights are trampled.
“If there is a deluge of federal authorities here that’s not necessary,” he said, “we want to keep people safe and we’re going to make sure that whatever actions anyone takes in the state – whether it’s someone coming from the federal side, ICE, or whether it happens to do with our local law enforcement – we’re going to make sure that we don’t allow profiling in this state.”
