Punishing Minnesota
MN-06 Watch Daily: February 3, 2026
12 posts over two days. 2 press conferences. Zero town halls.
911 days since his last in-person town hall.
The Lead: Defunding Minnesota’s Election Security
On Caucus Day — while thousands of Minnesotans gathered in church basements and community centers to participate in democracy — their Republican congressional delegation introduced a bill to punish them for it. (Find your caucus location here)
The Minnesota Voter Integrity Act
Introduced by: Rep. Pete Stauber (MN-08) Co-sponsored by: Rep. Tom Emmer (MN-06), Rep. Michelle Fischbach (MN-07), Rep. Brad Finstad (MN-01)
What it does:
The bill withholds federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA) funds from Minnesota until the state hands over sensitive voter data to Trump’s Department of Justice.
What data they want:
According to Bring Me The News, the Trump administration is demanding full voter registration lists including full names, dates of birth, residential addresses, driver’s license numbers, and social security numbers of Minnesota voters. They’re also targeting records on same-day voter registration and Minnesota’s vouching system.
What HAVA funds pay for:
These aren’t abstract federal dollars. According to Secretary Simon, HAVA funding protects Minnesota’s digital election infrastructure, secures the statewide voter registration system, supports townships, cities, and counties that administer elections, and hardens defenses against security breaches.
Cut the funding, and you’re cutting election security — not improving it.
The bigger picture:
Minnesota isn’t alone. The DOJ has demanded voter data from nearly every state. 32 states have declined. 24 are challenging the demand in court. But as Secretary Simon noted: “In none of the thirty-two states that have declined to share sensitive data with the DOJ have members of Congress threatened to starve their own state of election security resources.”
Only Minnesota’s GOP delegation is doing this to their own constituents.
Who’s behind the DOJ push:
KSTP reports that Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon — who spent years trying to overturn the 2020 election for Trump — is leading the effort. This isn’t about election security. It’s about giving the people who tried to overturn the last election access to your voter data.
The timing:
This comes the same week Trump called to “nationalize elections” and repeated the lie that he won Minnesota three times (he lost all three).
Secretary of State Steve Simon’s response:
“The proposed legislation is an irresponsible stunt. It would actively damage the security of our elections by threatening to starve Minnesota of critical federal funds that help protect our election infrastructure from harm or attack.”
“This comes only days after Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote a similar letter, which I called a ransom note.”
“In none of the thirty-two states that have declined to share sensitive data with the DOJ have members of Congress threatened to starve their own state of election security resources because they disagree with the legal position of the Secretary of State in a lawsuit.”
DFL Chair Richard Carlbom:
“Minnesotans didn’t elect their representatives to be lap-dogs for Donald Trump... Representatives Stauber, Finstad, Emmer, and Fischbach need to decide: do they work for Minnesotans or Donald Trump? Secretary Simon follows the rule of law — which means he won’t hand over private voter data without proper legal authority. These Minnesota Republicans abandon their law and order values the second it scores political points with the President.”
The bottom line:
The “law and order” party is threatening to defund election security — to punish Minnesota for following the law.
What Else Emmer Did
“I Stand With ICE”
Emmer posted this the same morning Ford Fischer reported ICE agents pulling handguns on observers in Minneapolis.
“Put away your weapons you douchebag, nobody is threatening you,” a protester yelled at the ICE agents as they left. “People are trying to get their kids to school!”
Emmer’s response to agents drawing weapons in a residential neighborhood while kids head to school: “I stand with ICE.”
Sharia Free Caucus Press Conference
Emmer retweeted the announcement twice and participated in the caucus’s first press conference today at 2 PM in the U.S. Capitol.
This is the same caucus where Emmer previously stated:
“Sharia is completely incompatible with the American way of life and threatens the very fabric of our society. It is radical, oppressive, and must never be allowed to gain a foothold in America.”
St. Cloud — in MN-06 — has one of Minnesota’s largest Somali-American communities.
The Walz Attack
Last night, Emmer retweeted Senator John Kennedy:
“Whatever Gov. Tim Walz says, believe the opposite. The man learned to lie before he learned to talk. He’s like a less masculine version of Hillary Clinton.”
This is what the House Majority Whip does with his platform. Not policy. Not constituent services. Gendered insults.
Leadership Press Conference
Emmer spoke at the House GOP leadership presser today:
“Law and order and responsible governance will prevail thanks to Republicans and despite obstructionists’ best efforts.”
“The Democrats’ attempts to stifle immigration enforcement and protect dangerous criminals—especially in my state—will prove to do nothing more than hurt law-abiding Americans.”
He mentioned Minnesota once — to attack Democrats. Nothing about the agents drawing weapons on observers this morning. Nothing about Caucus Day.
Out-of-State Endorsement
While Minnesota is in chaos, Emmer endorsed Mike LiPetri for NY-03:
“I look forward to sending Tom Suozzi back into lobbying.”
New York. Not Minnesota.
The Full Tweet Rundown
February 3 (Today):
Shutdown/CR: “Law and order and responsible governance will prevail”
NY-03 Endorsement: Endorsed Mike LiPetri
Sharia Free Caucus: RT’d presser announcement Sharia Free Caucus:
RT’d presser announcement (2nd) I
CE: “I stand with the brave men and women of @ICEgov”
February 2 (Last Night):
SCAM Act: “denaturalized and shipped back to where you came from”
Walz Attack: “less masculine version of Hillary Clinton”
Tax Policy: Working Families Tax Cut RT
Tax Policy: Inheritance tax RT
Shutdown/CR: “Let’s get it done”
Immigration: “Americans Overwhelmingly Support Deporting Criminal Illegals” RT
Tax Policy: No tax on tips/overtime RT
By category:
Tax Policy: 4 posts
ICE/Immigration: 3 posts
Sharia Free Caucus: 2 RTs + press conference
Shutdown/CR: 2 posts
Out-of-State Endorsement: 1 post
MN-06 Constituent Issues: 0
The Pattern
On Caucus Day, while Minnesotans participated in democracy:
Emmer co-sponsored a bill to defund their election security
Posted “I stand with ICE” while agents drew weapons on observers
Participated in an anti-Sharia press conference
Endorsed a candidate in New York
Called Walz a “less masculine Hillary Clinton”
He did not:
Attend a caucus in MN-06
Acknowledge the agents drawing weapons this morning
Address any constituent concerns
911 days since his last town hall. But he found time for the Sharia Free Caucus.
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Sources: Rep. Pete Stauber press release, Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon statement, KSTP, Bring Me The News, Northern News Now, Minnesota DFL, Ford Fischer/News2Share, Rep. Emmer's public social media posts, YouTube (Leadership Press Conference).