2020 called. They want their liberal playbook back.
If you feel as though you’re experiencing déjà vu, that’s because you are. The Democrats and their media allies are again attempting to weaponize a law enforcement encounter in Minneapolis against President Donald Trump and the Republican Party. Their goal is to shift attention away from the massive fraud they have enabled, stoke the fires of their own base, seize the moral high ground, and win some elections in the fall.
It will not work this time.
Last week, 37-year-old activist Renee Nicole Good was using a Honda Pilot SUV to block Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in Minneapolis. Good was trained by people affiliated with “MN ICE Watch,” an activist group that instructs people to use cars, crowds, and force to stop ICE operations and even “de-arrest” those who have been arrested. Attorney Laura Powell shared some of the group’s resources on X/Twitter, including pages from their “De-Arrest Primer.”
Good had been following, harassing, and impeding ICE officers’ actions that morning. Parked perpendicularly on the street for over three minutes and dancing to the sound of her own vehicle’s horn before her final encounter, her “wife” was filming the scene and taunting officers from outside the vehicle. Good was confronted by ICE agents who told her to get out of the car. As agent Jonathan Ross was walking around the front of her vehicle filming the confrontation, Good decided, instead of obeying the command, to back up, straighten her wheels, and smash the accelerator.
Video released from the officer’s phone shows that Good made eye contact with Ross before accelerating, and Good’s wife yelled, “Drive, baby, drive!” Having drawn his firearm when Good’s SUV was aimed at him, Ross was hit but fired three shots, killing Good.
Minneapolis activists have been packing the streets each night and even during the day since then. They have been pounding on the windows of hotels where they think ICE agents might be staying; taking over roads and vandalizing businesses and homes (“F— ICE” being the most common tag); distributing kits to deflate the tires of ICE vehicles; and even setting up another “autonomous zone” where police are denied entry.
What will happen to Minneapolis? It’s not likely that things will get better soon. Minnesota journalist Dustin Grage obtained a screenshot of Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) orders to stand down and let crowds do what they wanted on Friday night. Readers will know by the time this column appears whether Saturday night was another night of “fiery but peaceful” protest, as CNN bizarrely tried to claim in 2020, or just another cold night of adult tantrums. The decline will continue in the Twin Cities, however, whether quickly or at its current rate.
Are we to see a national “Winter of Love” to match the 2020 “Summer of Love” that resulted in around two dozen people killed, many more injured, many buildings burned to the ground, and around $2 billion paid out in insurance claims nationwide?
Unlikely. This time, with Elon Musk owning X/Twitter, people can see all the evidence showing that, if Renee Nicole Good’s end was a tragedy, it was a tragedy for which she bears responsibility. The abbreviated footage of George Floyd’s treatment by MPD officer Derek Chauvin was used by Democrats, media, and activists to craft a narrative that even many conservatives initially thought was accurate—and muted their reactions to the chaos.
This time it’s different, but that hasn’t stopped the Democrats and company from trying. While there were multiple video recordings of the event from a variety of angles, the Democrats and media leapt into action with a whole host of claims that ended up being disproven. Here are just a few:
- Good, a mother of three, wasn’t an activist—merely a mom who was just pulling out after dropping off her son at school.
- Good was seized by panic because of the frightening masked officers.
- Good didn’t see the officer in front of her when she pulled forward.
- Good didn’t put her foot on the gas.
- The ICE officer wasn’t even hit.
All of these points have been completely debunked by widely available video, but the Democrat-media machine has kept going with ever more bizarre attempts at framing a narrative whereby Good can be an innocent martyr who did not drive her car recklessly in the direction of the agent.
Some have bizarrely suggested that a 4,000-pound vehicle moving slowly won’t hurt. The shameful Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said at a press conference that the ICE agent “walked away with a hip injury that he might as well have gotten from closing a refrigerator door with his hips.” His implication is that because the officer wasn’t badly injured by being struck, there was no danger.
Others have fixated on Good’s words to the officer as he circled her car filming: “That’s fine, dude. I’m not mad at you.” The implication is that because of these “friendly” words, she couldn’t have done anything dangerous or aggressive immediately afterward. But we don’t know what she meant by those words. They could have been darkly ironic. Indeed, some heard in them the aggression and hatred with which some people intone, “Bless your heart.”
Still others have attempted to use the officer’s off-color exclamation at the woman after she hit him as reason to conclude he fired his weapon because he hated women.
Yet others on the left have tried to turn their attention to investigating Alpha News, the outlet to which the officer’s camera footage was released.
Frankly, we don’t know what Good’s intention was when gunning her car. Was she trying to run him over? Scare him by getting close? It doesn’t really matter. Good hit the officer, demonstrating that his perception of danger was accurate.
Democrats and media figures are still attempting to seal an “evil ICE agent kills innocent woman” narrative, but it’s just not working this time except for partisans of the left who have sealed themselves in legacy media bubbles. X under Elon Musk allows users to show the evidence debunking all the lies about Good and her actions. It also enables lawyers with vast experience, such as former DOJ prosecutor and January 6 defense attorney Bill Shipley, to explain the legal standards at play, showing that Good’s intention doesn’t matter, among other realities.
The Trump administration has gone on the offensive to defend the officer before the narrative is sealed by Democrats. While some would prefer that the government be quiet until the legal matters are settled, this is yet another case of Trump understanding the world better than others. Democrats and media have long been involved in asymmetric information warfare in these cases. They don’t hesitate to make any case they want, while Republicans and conservatives stand by. Trump knows this is the way to lose every time, even if, as we see, the evidence for their side of the case is already out there.
Even if the insanity of 2020 is repeated in Minnesota, the country will not follow the left into the valley of the shadow of death in 2026. Nor will the Trump administration allow it to happen.
David P. Deavel teaches at the University of St. Thomas in Houston. A past Lincoln Fellow at the Claremont Institute, he is a Senior Contributor at The Imaginative Conservative. Follow him on X (Twitter) @davidpdeavel.
The Democratic Party, the media and all their Socialist, Marxist, Communist, Muslims/Hamas, CCP along with Soros are all enemies to America and to the American People!
President Trump is great and he is doing great things for our country and the American People! The American People will fully support and defend our great President Trump! The American people must put an end to all of these enemies, liars and thieves!!
Politicians who make their living by lying can spin anything but convincing sane people to swallow their rhetoric is another story. No amateur protest groups are that organized, they’re too stupid. Stop the money and see where the roaches scatter. Only democrat nut jobs can see video proof and deny it ever happened.
The BATTLE between GOOD and EVIL continues. This nation is slowly working toward a position of continued violence in many Democratic run cities. If this situation continues, the nation may well see a civil war breakout with no return.
All these stinking Democrats and leftist whack jobs need to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law! And they better not be walking away this time.
The mainstream press and the Democrats continue to lie an betray the American people. Why haven’t the broadcast licenses of CBS, NPR, PBS, NBC and ABC been pulled yet? None of these organizations have operated in the public interest in decades. Why aren’t these rioters in jail? Why aren’t politicians who cause this nonsense censured by Congress at the very least? The political class does nothing but betray the vast majority of the citizenry. They only represent themselves, not the public!
I am hoping DHS & FBI Investigates these subversive organizations that incite people to go do illegal interference with ICS and B.P> Operations. Subversive and conspiracy to commit crimes can not be tolerated or ignored..
The riots of 2020 was a creation of the BLM and Antifa and democrat leadership in the city of Minneapolis and the state democrat leadership. George Floyd was made into a martyr for no reason than showing the hate and racism that the dems are and have been creating since 2008. They want to overthrow this government. And these anti ICE anti deportation demonstrators paid for by Soros and the democrat communist millionaires are at the forefront of that movement. This Good lady created her own death. She wanted to be a hero among these anti ICE groups. Not once do you hear from the democrats that this is pure hatred and sedition against the country. They are always right. Once we would like to hear that the democrats are wrong. They are supporting the wrong people in this country. People that come here eat our country bare and then attack us to kill the citizens of this country. What in the world is wrong with these people. Attacking their fellow citizens who are trying to keep the country safe from murderers rapist and other criminal
and evil forces that want to destroy America. The only conclusion we can draw is the democrats are hell bent on destroying this country. Starting with destroying the white race and replace them with illegals from all over the globe. The Somalis in Minneapolis get more support than law enforcement like ICE. And everything is always the fault of the victim. Not once did we hear a sorry or sympathy when all these women and girls were killed and raped. They asked for it they kept saying. Or it didn’t happen like they said. Van Hollen had a MS 13 gang banger sprung from jail in El Salvador. Had lunch and margaritas with him. But the poor ICE agent that was run over by this Good lady he was a criminal. I think the summer of love will not turn into a winter of love. The media is not in control of the narrative. We just need to arrest more of these protesters and follow who is paying them to go this far. More arrest less appeasement.
A faction on the Left has always supported violent revolution and lawlessness. That faction has only grown much larger. They are the real “insurrectionist” and must be stopped if America is to survive.
Open letter to Democrats and their minions: FAFO
(fool around and find out)
Why even go around where ICE was? When you think that there may be trouble then stay away and don’t use your vehicle as a weapon!!!!
What her intention was doesn’t matter she did not listen to the police and created this whole incident. She basically committed suicide by cop.
The time has come for people to decide whether they are an American or a democrat.
Good’s 6 year old son is now less likely to be castrated. He just has to stay far away from the “wife”.
ICE in! Democrats OUT!
All those promoting such violence and unrest need psychiatric help! They have lost their senses. All the politicians who are endorsing this kind of unrest are not patriots but infidels and traitors to our Republic. Please use your common sense. This is all a ploy to create mass confusion and distort the election process so more Marxists can gain power. This is an attempt at insurrection. Arrests should follow, not of the protestors but of the provocateurs endorsing and paying for it! We need to see handcuffs on every one of them. Fear of incarceration is the only way these criminals will be motivated to cease and desist. They are not afraid of the law because they have infiltrated our judicial system. God Bless America!
Part of the book of Ecclesiastes 3 comes to mind; There is a season, spin spin spin. These riots aren’t our fault, spin spin spin. If our lips are moving we are lying spin spin spin. Maybe that’s not quite how It was written, I’ve taken a little poetic license with it
While it may [or may not] be true that Good was trying to hit the ICE agent, he had neither time nor ESP to decide her intentions. She had ZERO business being there to start with. All these deadbeats who have nothing to do [evidently] other than harassing LEOs, need to be prosecuted federally for ANY infractions of federal law!
Sad that a life was lost, but our decisions put us in a spot that we should not have been.
Why was she so adamant to harass the ICE agents? As a Mom and Grandmother, that is the last place I would want to be when there are law enforcement personnel doing their job of arresting illegals. I am astounded at the Governor and Mayor’s language and outrage at our law enforcement men and women doing a job they were sworn in to do.
Does not the Governor and Mayor have a commitment to their sworn oaths?
Do they not live in the USA? Do they think that their State is sovereign above the Federal laws. All they have to do is to look it up and they are definitely on the wrong side of the nation’s laws. Time for them to step down and leave the country!
Just follow the money, who gets kickback? Mn. citizens are not the protesters!
USA, please don’t fall for these type of leftist tactics again.! Professor Deavel, thank you for this article! Go ICE! Please don’t be bullied by these evil, unpatriotic, pathetic people anymore! Please make them look like the idiots they are, rather than have us have to watch them bully you
It’s a shame but none of this matters anymore. The only thing that matters is perception; the way the public sees it, the way the media presents it. Many of these protesters are paid actors. The democrat owned media is saying what they are told to say, and the financial support for all of this is overwhelming. Until all of these treasonous acts are stopped nothing will change. Democrats control the media, democrats control the country. Treason and lies are not free speech! But who can stop them? Really, who??
The important thing to keep in mind is that this is all the product of the demonic-rat party. From it’s foundation to maintain the slavery of Black Americans, they have worked against freedom and independence in America:
Today’s Democrats are much like Democrats of 1850’s, refusing to obey Federal Laws. The eight states in open rebellion are , California, Oregon, Washington state, Colorado, Minnesota, Illinois, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. New York and Vermont are right on the edge there. Sad that after 175 years Democrats are still creating chaos and anarchy in America.
The old days of Hubert Humphrey & Walter Mondale are long gone. At least these two would work with the opposite party locally or nationally. What’s now in office in particular the mayor of Mpls. and the state governor are what this DFL party has morphed into. What a shame. ICE is enforcing the law with the removal of Illegal immigrants criminal & otherwise. These probable paid protestors brought in from elsewhere as well as the local element have no sense of embarrassment or guilt for their tactics. While having left the Twin Cities yrs. ago and not a native from there anyway, it certainly has changed since I moved back to my original metro area in 1979. Go I.C.E.! Keep up the good work.
We are getting very sick and tired of the Democratic agenda, they are becoming more violent by the hour, And we are ready, just one spark, and this country will blow.
Democrat = lying, pathetic, anti-American SCUM
ALL dems know is Reruns & wont play these damn Games NO
Sorry Dems like your damn Wuhan plague crap
Since officials in Minneapolis are so invested in illegal aliens, ICE should send all they arrest there. Let the illegals know that they will be arrested again if they leave Minneapolis. Then cut off all aid to Minnesota. They can own the people they want to inflict upon us.
I have said it before and I will say it again, if there is ever going to be a civil war, it will not be between races, Not the North and South, but between the parties, We ARE getting truly feed up with the violence the Democrats are showing, and using. One spark and this country will blow like a cannon. Charlie Kirk was bad enough, trying to kill Trump even worse, We have had enough of the left BS. we are ready to take back our country (and fight to death) for the principals that this country was founded on. Trump attempted killing first strike, Charlie Kirk assignation second strike, Third strike game over, locked loaded and by far ready!!!
Let chitcogo,new dork,southern kalifornia and the rest of the AMERICA haters have their own area,fence it off and let them ruin it.
All of the energy and money spent on these ridiculous “protests” is mind boggling! Just think of how much good that energy and money could do to help those truly in need. The Left talks a good game, but all of their bluster amounts to nothing in the end – such a waste!
The radical liberals in government positions and media lie so often that I immediately suspect that anything they say is a lie. The only ones who think they are telling the truth are other radicals who do not want to know the truth. There are people in my family who are this way, they just put on their blinders and go vote Democrat because their parents did and that’s that. Closed, uneducated minds are a dangerous thing for our Republic!
MN is nothing but a Hell Hole, with sick, twisted, Evil Terrorists, even the old people are Evil, the women are like Demons. Their idea of Winter Love is Winter Hell for other people. They’re angry, mad, ready for a fight, it’s like protesting is their hobby. If their poor excuses for a Mayor and Governor would do their job and let Police Officers, Law Enforcement do their jobs then President Trump wouldn’t have to send in ICE to do it for them. MN reminds me of Sodom and Gomorrah in the Bible, the two cities were so Evil God destroyed them. MN would be the last place I would want to go.
I am very ashamed of the wave of Hateful Wave of Democrats lying lie after lie about ICE officers who are trying to remove criminals off the streets. Why are they pushing women in such dangerous situations. Where are the men? I think that each one of the MOB along with the Democratic officials need to seek help.
Wood — pawn of democracy—- dead
Where democracy wants everyone— dead.
Pawns do there dirty work — dead.
democrats – chicken shit won’t do it themselves. Pawn are you ?? Outcome—dead
Good isn’t, or shall I say wasn’t, black. That is the reason why the riots will fade quickly.
The Democratic Party is equivalent to the Bolsheviks of 1917. They are fundamentally satanic in their vile behavior.
Why do they support these so-called immigrants who are an occupation army?
I think people underestimate how much the pandemic was the bone dry timber that fuled the flame for the Floyd protests. Just too many people sitting around with nothing to do. To be fair and non-partisan about it, Jan 6 would’ve been a much smaller affair, too, for the same reasons. People just have jobs and things to do these days.