Former advisor to Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, questioned the White House's decision to withdraw federal immigration enforcement agents from Minnesota and stated on his podcast “War Room” that “that’s just not going to work.”

In the latest episode of his show, Bannon questioned White House border czar Tom Homan for praising Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey after they were sent to oversee the immigration crackdown in the state. Bannon said Trump tried to “accommodate” and negotiate, but that in the “War Room” they agree that “there is nothing to negotiate there.” He also compared the operation in Minnesota to the battles of Fallujah and Najaf during the 2004 Iraq War and called the anti-ICE protesters “Marxist jihadists.” According to him, the resistance to the Trump administration broke “the spirit of ICE and Customs and Border Protection.” The operations in Minnesota: Homan, for his part, announced that there will be a “significant reduction” in federal operations in Minnesota this week and next. He explained that a small staff will remain to close down and transfer full command control to the field office, and ensure that agitation activity continues to decrease while state and local forces maintain the safety of officers and the community. Homan's announcement comes weeks after the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis during federal operations, incidents that sparked outrage and unrest in the state. Later, Homan stated on Fox News that the federal presence in Minnesota "is not going away," even if the operational surge is reduced. On Capitol Hill, Democratic lawmakers continue to call for ICE reforms before approving funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Negotiations between the Senate and the White House failed to reach an agreement this week.Therefore, a partial shutdown affecting DHS and its agencies, including ICE, could begin at midnight on Friday.