When people say “nothing matters anymore,” I usually roll my eyes. Institutions are slow, not fake.
But there’s a specific smell test I can’t ignore:
If a federal officer kills a civilian, and the system built to investigate officer-involved shootings is told to stand down… that’s not “politics.” That’s an accountability circuit being intentionally unplugged.
The story isn’t just the Minneapolis shooting. it's the procedural shutdown that followed it. After ICE officer Jonathan Ross shot and killed Renée Nicole Good on Jan. 7, at least four senior leaders in DOJ’s Civil Rights Division criminal section resigned after leadership decided not to open the kind of civil-rights/proper-use-of-force probe that section normally handles.
Meanwhile, reporting says the FBI took over the investigation and Minnesota authorities say they’ve been cut off from evidence access that would typically be part of a joint process.
This is the mechanism I want to focus on:
Pre-judgment: senior federal officials publicly defend the shooting before an investigation is complete.
Jurisdiction squeeze: the feds centralize the probe while locals say they can’t access materials.
Expertise sidelined: civil-rights prosecutors who specialize in fatal-force reviews are kept out, and then quit.
Predictable result: trust collapses, protests expand, lawsuits follow.
I’m not throwing around “cover-up” casually. To actually call it that, you’d need to see: (1) they refuse to investigate when they normally would, (2) they control the evidence and block transparency, and (3) they publicly declare the officer innocent before doing either of those things.
What would change my mind: DOJ opens the standard civil-rights deadly-force review, evidence is shared through a normal joint process, and the timeline is made verifiable.
If the goal is legitimacy, focus on process integrity. Because once you normalize skipping the circuit breakers, you don’t get them back for free.
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SourcesSources
• CBS News — DOJ Civil Rights Division won’t investigate Minneapolis ICE shooting (sources)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/doj-civil-rights-division-will-not-investigate-minneapolis-ice-shooting-sources-say/
Key claim support: civil-rights prosecutors told they will not play a role in the probe.
• Washington Post — Civil Rights Division left out of Minneapolis probe (irregularity concerns)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/01/12/minneapolis-shooting-justice-department-investigation-civil-rights/
Explains why excluding Civil Rights is unusual + the accountability implications (paywall for some).
• PBS NewsHour — Minnesota officials say they can’t access evidence; FBI won’t work jointly
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/minnesota-officials-say-they-cant-access-evidence-after-fatal-ice-shooting-and-fbi-wont-work-jointly-on-investigation
Key claim support: state/local investigators say they’re cut out of evidence access / joint process.
• Reuters — Minnesota ICE shooting puts U.S. on edge; state investigators say they’re shut out
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/ice-fatal-shooting-minnesota-woman-puts-us-edge-2026-01-08/
Straight-news backbone + confirmation of federal/state friction (often paywalled).
• AP — Minnesota + Minneapolis + St. Paul sue to stop immigration crackdown
https://apnews.com/article/6ae64be5a0d6a718b658a938fb56e567
Fallout: lawsuit framing + scope of the enforcement surge + civil-rights/constitutional arguments.
• ACLU — Press release calling for action after the shooting
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-and-aclu-of-minnesota-demand-immediate-action-after-ice-shoots-and-kills-minnesota-woman
Advocacy framing + specific demands; useful for “what critics are arguing” section.
If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State. Thank you for you attention to this matter! President DJT
A family member reacts after a federal immigration officer used a battering ram to break down a door before making an arrest on January 11, 2026, in Minneapolis.
https://www.theatlantic.com/photography/2026/01/photos-minneapolis-neighborhoods-vs-ice/685607/
The U.S. hasn’t “won” the trade war with China, and strategic pressure is rising; it isn’t facing imminent insolvency, but higher debt and interest costs are tightening room to maneuver; China’s export controls on refined rare earths don’t incapacitate the U.S. military, but they do create bottlenecks that can degrade readiness and surge capacity over time; in that climate, Trump is using aggressive tactics to gain and hold power, leaning on crisis framing and institutional pressure; and the oldest move returns: scapegoating minorities and stoking division to justify “exceptional” measures like emergency powers, expanded policing, reduced accountability, and, if unchecked, erosion of democratic constraints.
If “Insurrection Act” is the answer to citizens pushing back on ICE tactics, we’re not talking about law enforcement anymore. We're talking about federal supremacy over a state.
Also: this is the same posture you see in the recent clip where the President mouths “f*** you” and flips off a heckler at the Ford plant. Not “strength”. It's contempt for the idea that citizens can object.
Source (TMZ clip): https://www.tmz.com/watch/donald-trump-middle-finger-01-13-2026/
Real question: what’s the limiting principle? If a state or city doesn’t “obey,” do we just escalate from financial surveillance → federal surge → Insurrection Act?
There's a very interesting documentary on HBO right now about the CIT teams that were used for years in the Border Patrol. The practice is not recent to this year. It's been around for a long time with that agency.