Governor Walz Condemns Trump's 'Garbage' Remarks Towards Minnesota's Somali Community

Governor Walz Responds to Trump's Comments

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on Thursday, December 4, 2025, strongly condemned former President Donald Trump's recent remarks regarding the state's Somali community. Trump had referred to the community as 'garbage' and labeled Minnesota a 'hellhole,' prompting a swift and forceful rebuke from the governor.

During a news conference, Governor Walz characterized Trump's statements as 'racist lies and slander' and 'unprecedented for a United States president.' He emphasized the impact of such language, stating, 'We've got little children going to school today who their president called them garbage.' Walz asserted that Trump's comments 'slandered all Minnesotans' and highlighted the unacceptability of 'demonizing an entire group of people by their race and their ethnicity.'

Details of Trump's Remarks

Trump's controversial statements unfolded over several days. In a Thanksgiving message on Truth Social, he alleged that Somali immigrants were 'taking over' Minnesota and 'roving the streets' in gangs. He also claimed Minnesota was 'a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity' and announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status for Somalis in the state.

The rhetoric escalated during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, December 2, 2025, where Trump reportedly stated he did not want immigrants from Somalia in the U.S., saying, 'We can go one way or the other, and we're going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country.' He further described Somalia as 'barely a country' with people 'running around killing each other.' On Wednesday, December 3, 2025, Trump continued, asserting that Minnesota had become a 'hellhole' because of Somalis and that 'Somalians should be out of here. They've destroyed our country.' He also directed personal insults at U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, who immigrated from Somalia, and Governor Walz.

Context and Broader Reactions

Trump's comments followed claims by a conservative news outlet, City Journal, suggesting that taxpayer dollars from defrauded government programs in Minnesota might have been diverted to the militant group al-Shabab. Simultaneously, federal authorities were reportedly preparing an immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota, specifically targeting Somalis living unlawfully in the U.S.

Minnesota is home to the largest Somali population in the U.S., with approximately 84,000 residents of Somali descent in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, many of whom are U.S. citizens. While Governor Walz called on other politicians to join his condemnation, Republican legislative leaders in Minnesota largely refrained from doing so. However, lawmakers in Ohio, which has the second-largest Somali population, also issued condemnations, with the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus and the Ohio Jewish Caucus calling Trump's comments 'xenophobic, dangerous and wholly unacceptable.'