Judge Issues Blistering Ruling on DOJ's Walz Subpoenas

In a blistering ruling unsealed Monday, the chief federal judge in Minnesota quashed grand jury subpoenas aimed at Gov. Tim Walz and several top state and local officials, saying the Justice Department went too far. In a sharply worded 29-page decision, US District Judge Patrick Schiltz called the subpoenas an improper attempt to punish Walz and his allies for refusing to help President Trump's immigration crackdown, Politico reports.

• "Initiating a criminal investigation in order to harass political opponents or to coerce them into taking official action—particularly official action that the federal government cannot directly require those political opponents to take—is a blatantly unlawful and unethical use" of the grand jury process, wrote Schiltz, a George W. Bush appointee.

• Schiltz said there appeared to be "extremely weak to nonexistent" connections between the information sought and any possible criminal violations, the AP reports. The "dominant purpose" of the subpoenas, he said, was to "coerce Minnesota officials into assisting the federal government with enforcing civil immigration law and to harass and retaliate against them for failing to do so." He noted that the Constitution bans the federal government from forcing states to enforce federal laws.
• The judge also connected the move to what he described as a pattern of retaliatory investigations under Trump, citing a similar case involving subpoenas aimed at then-Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell.

• The ruling wipes out six subpoenas served in January targeting Walz, the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota's attorney general, and two county commissioners.
• Walz called the ruling "a victory for the rule of law and our democracy," the AP reports. The Justice Department, he said in a statement, "is pursuing criminal investigations into the President's political opponents. This case was just one example of that, but we are seeing daily reminders of this administration's lawlessness—in Minnesota and around the country. We all must continue to seek justice and uphold the rule of law."
• Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, like Walz, was a fierce critic of the immigration crackdown. He said Monday that criticizing the government is not a crime. "One of the defining strengths of our democracy is the ability to challenge those in power without fear of retribution," he said. "Elected officials have both the right and the responsibility to speak honestly about how government decisions affect the people they serve."