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Laura Coates Live

Trump Threatens to Invoke Insurrection Act in Response to Minneapolis Protests; Masked Agents Surround's Citizen's Car; Tom Homan Provides Suggestion to Fix Public Backlash Against ICE. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired January 15, 2026 - 23:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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ABBY PHILLIP, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Catch up on the latest news with your favorite kind of news team Roy Wood, Jr., Amber Ruffin, and Michael Ian Black. They are back with a comic take on the week's headlines. The new season of "Have I Got News for You" premieres on January 24 at 9 p.m. Eastern on CNN, and the next day on the CNN app. And thank you for watching "NewsNight." You can catch me any time on your favorite social media X, Instagram, and TikTok. "Laura Coates Live" starts right now.

LAURA COATES, CNN HOST AND SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Good evening. I'm Laura Coates. You're looking at live pictures from Minneapolis during another tense night between federal officers and protesters. They're moving as we speak right now, appearing to move the crowd out of the street. We'll check in outside the Whipple Federal Building momentarily.

Throughout the day, we have seen agents deploying pepper spray. We have seen some people get detained. Protesters have been shouting and occasionally throwing objects in their direction. It's all after last night's incident where a federal agent shot a suspect after DHS alleged that an agent was assaulted. One week before, Renee Good was shot and killed by ICE.

And now, President Trump is once again dangling the threat of invoking the Insurrection Act. He posted this very warning, warning if Minnesota politicians don't stop what he calls professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking ICE, he will invoke that.

But what is the Insurrection Act exactly? You'll hear a lot about it, right? Well, it's the big exception to the general rule that keeps U.S. troops from being used for domestic law enforcement. Now, governor can always ask for this kind of help if there's an emergency.

But in certain situations, it lets the president send in the military even without a governor asking for any help. It's designed for out of control situations when it's not possible to carry out federal law or if federal law is being obstructed. And we see, of course, the agents appearing to band together to move in unison, to hold a line that we will explore in just a moment. Ultimately, it's one of the president's few unchecked powers, though, to invoke the Insurrection Act. And make no mistake, the commander-in- chief's power to deploy is already extraordinary. So, it's not really whether he has the power to invoke the Insurrection Act. No. The question is, does he have sufficient justification to invoke it?

Well, let's look at the facts. We have seen multiple nights of unrest in Minneapolis. And while there have been instances of peaceful protests, albeit verbal, there have also been instances when those protests have been anything but peaceful and have devolved into what the Minneapolis police chief described as unlawful assembly.

Is that enough to warrant the Insurrection Act? Because that's what this is about. And look, if he really wants to invoke it, he really can, and it has been done before. I mean, not in recent times, but the last time, 1992, by George H.W. Bush during the height of the Los Angeles riots after the Rodney King verdict. But even then, the state, the state asks for federal help in this situation, obviously, pales in comparison to the vast unrest and damage to the city in that instance.

But the last time the Insurrection Act was invoked without a governor of the state requesting it, well, you've got to rewind that clock to 1965, back to the civil rights period when Lyndon Johnson used it in Alabama to protect activists marching from Selma to Montgomery after they were attacked by state troopers on Bloody Sunday.

And that gets to perhaps the stark irony here people are exploring because back then, the Insurrection Act was used as a kind of shield. Federal power was used to protect civil rights. Now, Trump is flirting with using it as a sword, threatening to overrule a state and use federal power to potentially police American streets and as protesters believe, trample civil rights.

CNN's Shimon Prokupecz is on the ground for us in Minneapolis. Shimon, we're watching this movement of holding the line. They're retreating. They're advancing. What's going on, Shimon?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE REPORTER: So, for the past two hours, we've been watching as protesters have been kicking cars, throwing things at cars, as there are federal law enforcement vehicles that have been going into this building.

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And we have watched. And federal law enforcement has done nothing. And here we go. We're starting to throw the -- those -- hold on. Let me just come back here. As you can see basically now, they're just deploying tear gas because what has been happening --

(COUGHING)

-- is that they -- we have more tear gas here. Celina (ph), let's move back.

(COUGHING)

COATES: We're following you, Shimon. I can hear you. I know you're trying to catch your breath from the deployment of that.

PROKUPECZ: Yes.

COATES: Very disruptive.

PROKUPECZ: Well, they threw the -- they threw the percussion grenades, and then they came from the other side, and they started throwing the tear gas because --

(COUGHING)

-- they came from behind. So, this -- this -- this line of law enforcement that we were in front of --

(COUGHING)

-- was pushing the crowd back. Then from the other side came --

(COUGHING)

-- the other set of law enforcement officials who started throwing those percussion grenades, and then tear gas. The crowd wasn't a very large crowd.

(COUGHING)

Laura, what has been happening -- wow, this is nasty. They've been kicking cars. They've been --

(COUGHING)

-- throwing things at the cars. And so, finally --

COATES: Shimon, catch your breath for a second. We're watching -- we're following along with you. I want to give you a second because that -- what they have deployed is obviously disrupting your ability to breathe --

PROKUPECZ: It's intense.

COATES: It's intense. I know you're --

(COUGHING)

-- obviously coughing. I want to give you a second and just allow our audience to understand and follow what's happening right now. He is outside of a federal building known as the Whipple Building. This has been the site that many of you have seen over the past several days where you've had protesters on the other side of an invisible line when federal agents are holding it.

They are allowing different federal vehicles to go in and out. But as they are going in and out, protesters are aware that these are federal agents possibly going in, and they seem to be swarming around the cars. And as you're seeing them advance and retreat, they are trying to allow these vehicles to go through. We are following Shimon Prokupecz who is on the ground, has been throughout the night, seeing this ebb and flow. Shimon, tell me what's going on right now.

PROKUPECZ: Now -- I mean, we're watching right here. Leonel (ph) -- Leonel (ph), my photographer, is having a little bit of a hard time seeing. But we're going to try to get here. We're here. You can see federal law enforcement now approaching a group of protesters here. We don't know exactly why.

But these are -- these are -- these -- I mean, SWAT here, they're in, you know, might as well looks like, you know, military fatigue. But they came from another side. We did not expect this at all. This line, these dark-colored uniforms that you're seeing here, that's Customs and Border patrol. We saw them earlier in the 8:00 hour. They moved out. They pushed the people back and that was it. They went back inside.

Then after that, there were some more intense moments. But certainly, this is the most aggressive we have seen them today. I mean, they came from every side, they threw those percussion grenades, and then they just started firing tear gas, and that's when we all started trying to disperse and clear out.

But what has been happening here, Laura, through the night, and I have to say, having covered so many of these now, actually, the law enforcement here was very patient with the protesters. I watched as car after car with law enforcement officials go in, come out, dozens of cars, and they would -- the protesters would kick the cars, they would throw things at cars, and the law enforcement did nothing, they did nothing.

And then, all of a sudden, finally, I guess around, you know, as you were getting ready to go on air, they had enough. I mean, the crowd had basically decreased. And then, all of a sudden, they just came, and they swarmed. And this is --

COATES: Do you know what triggered it, Shimon? I mean, what do you -- did you see --

PROKUPECZ: Yes.

COATES: -- any trigger as to why they came from all sides?

PROKUPECZ: Well, what was happening was the protesters were sitting in the driveway, and they warned them several times, get out of the driveway, get out of the driveway, get out of the driveway.

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And they did it. And then they continuously were kicking cars. Continuously. I mean, every time a car walked in, came in, every time a car came out, it was federal law enforcement, and they were kicking the cars.

And so, as a result of all that, this is where we are now. You could see, these are the Customs and Border patrol officers. They're the ones that have been pushing the crowd back. They were not the ones using tear gas. It's this other group of officers --

(COUGHING)

-- who come out. You know, they have all the gear. They have pepper spray. They have -- they could fire pepper balls, and then, obviously, the tear gas. You could still smell and feel the tear gas here in the air. But, I mean, it was quite something.

COATES: Shimon, compare the size and number of these agents, compare to the number of protesters on the scene.

PROKUPECZ: Oh, I mean, it's by far, at this point now, I would say there are way more law enforcement officials and officers than there are protesters. I mean, they really -- the point of this, clearly, Laura, was to clear these people out. I mean, they had had enough. They were letting them kind of hang out. You know, they would -- some of them were just yelling, chanting, doing their thing. But at some point --

(COUGHING)

-- you kind of expected this because -- I mean, enough was enough, I think, for them, and they finally said, OK, we're coming. But this is certainly the most aggressive we've seen them tonight by far. They came from every direction.

Earlier tonight, you know, Laura, I was watching as some of the protesters were shaking the fence, trying to knock the fence down. And, you know, the law enforcement here moved in, and they pushed them back, and then it stopped.

COATES: Shimon --

PROKUPECZ: But now, you're seeing some of them are starting to back up.

COATES: Stand by for us.

PROKUPECZ: This was quite something.

COATES: Right. This is unbelievable.

PROKUPECZ: Yes, yes.

COATES: I hear -- I hear -- I hear someone with a megaphone. I'm not sure if it's the actual agents or not with the warning that they were treating. Stand by for a second.

PROKUPECZ: No. It's protesters.

COATES: They're protesters. I want to bring in Donell Harvin to this. He's a former chief of Homeland Security and Intelligence from Washington, D.C. Walk us through as well what you're seeing here. You heard Shimon described that there had been -- almost the patience ran out. But Customs and Border patrol agents instead of apparently ICE or local law enforcement or federal law enforcement. Can you describe why that would be the presence we would see enforcing now?

DONELL HARVIN, FORMER CHIEF OF HOMELAND SECURITY AND INTELLIGENCE, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA (voice-over): Yes. You know, you have a seven- layer cake out there of complexity and craziness. So, the first thing I want to key in on is what Shimon said.

PROKUPECZ: Yes.

HARVIN (voice-over): That this is completely unexpected in state and local civil disturbance. Something like that, what we just saw, wouldn't be unexpected. Law enforcement would get on their bull horns, and they would give timed warnings to protesters, saying you're breaking curfew, you're in a place you're not supposed to be, you're going to be pepper-sprayed. They give plenty of warnings.

COATES: And a countdown almost.

HARVIN (voice-over): Correct. Shimon should never have been surprised that this happened. But this is the federal way, right? So, the federal officers are not trained to deescalate. These ICE officers are not trained in that space. They're trained to do what they're supposed to do. Customs and --

COATES: What we're seeing right now.

HARVIN (voice-over): Yes. Customs and Border really doesn't supposed to be doing work in the interior, right? So, they're training. That doesn't mean that they can't. Clearly, we've seen over the last year, they're going around with ICE supporting ICE.

But, once again, we're talking about fundamental training and who's trained to do what. State and locals are best trained to do this work. In fact, the National Guard is even trained, better than the Customs and Border and ICE to do this type of what we call civil disturbance work.

And so, the kind of madness that Shimon is showing is what happens when you have law enforcement that's not fully trained to interact with the public.

Now, on the public's end, this is really a failure, I think, of local government, right? If Tim Walz is listening, if the mayor of Minneapolis is listening right now, he needs to protect his people, and the best way they can protect the public is to keep them away from this facility. This facility has a right to operate. People should not be sitting or lying down in front of this facility. It's probably operating 24 hours. And it's not safe for those people to be in front of that facility and blocking that facility. So, this is --

COATES: It is plain precisely how the governor and mayor could ensure that protesters are not on a public forum street, which is a sidewalk outside of the federal building. Normally, it's a public forum. You're saying that they should block the area in some way to prevent access? HARVIN (voice-over): And we've done that in many cities. We've done that here in D.C. Create a space that's legal for them, on a sidewalk across the street, and show them where they can peacefully protest, that their First Amendment rights will be protected. But I see no local police. Maybe we can Shimon if it is local or state police out there telling these individuals where they can go.

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And, quite frankly, it's not the federal law enforcement to tell them where they can go and protest, right? It's their job to protect that facility and the comings and goings of that facility. So, there is a real gap here, and that's where the public can be legally at to do what they want to do.

COATES: Shimon, Donell is describing a tension here between the responsibilities of local law enforcement and what we're seeing in terms of the border that appears to be created every time those agents are advancing or retreating. The line they appear to be holding is the space where you can lawfully protest and where they do not want them to penetrate.

PROKUPECZ: Yes. I'm just trying to look, Laura. This is the stuff that I'm finding. This is the stuff that they were deploying. I mean, there's a bunch of canisters here. Yes. So, there's -- this stuff is -- it's all over the ground here. What was your question again? I'm sorry.

COATES: Yes. No. I want -- I want -- tell me the line. Where -- where --- where -- are people able to protest in this area? Are they moving people back from a lawful line to protest? What are we seeing?

PROKUPECZ: So, yes. So, yes, yes, yes. So, this is the driveway into the -- right. You know this area. This is the driveway into the federal building. They have told them they cannot be in this driveway, right? That's the thing. This is off limits, this driveway. But the protesters were there. So, then, they would come out. If they didn't move, they would push them back.

And I can show you here behind me -- let's show Laura. This is the sidewalk. So, all of this is free, like they were allowed to stay here. The street is open. This traffic, we've been watching cars up and down this street the whole night.

You know, I think it's important to know that the local police, Minneapolis police, and the state police have nothing to do with this. They are not here. They have not been here. This has been entirely a federal operation.

I will say to you, they did give some warning that people would be arrested, that the federal building was closed, that they would have to leave. But, you know, they made these announcements the entire night.

But the way in which they came out of this building, Laura, it wasn't just that they were coming this way, right? It's one thing our eyes are right here. We're watching the CBP officers who are using their tactics. And clearly, they're trained in crowd control.

And just out of nowhere, out of nowhere, those other -- the other team of federal law enforcement officers come from this other direction and start firing the percussion grenades, and then they started with the tear gas, and then that was it, and then everyone obviously started running.

But, you know, there was -- you know, usually, it's never a warning if you're going to deploy tear gas. But they came out with such force here because, like I said, I just think, finally for them, enough was enough. They gave warnings for people to get out of the driveway.

And I do think -- I do think the kicking of the cars and the continuous attacking of the cars, the vehicles, the federal law enforcement vehicles as they went in and went out, I was kind of surprised at one point that they weren't trying to stop that sooner. And then, finally, it just -- it got to a point where it was -- I don't know. It just got very intense, certainly.

COATES: We've been watching. Shimon, stay with us. Keep your eyes to the ground. I want to know what's going on and stay safe. We got to go to a quick break. We're going to come right back live out of Minneapolis.

(COUGHING)

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[23:20:00]

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COATES: A tense scene outside the Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis. Just moments ago, federal officers used tear gas to push protesters out of a driveway. This is happening on the same day that President Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act and send troops into Minneapolis.

I want to bring in Douglas Kelly, former assistant U.S. attorney in Minnesota. Douglas, walk me through the reality. Could Trump legally invoke the Interaction Act here?

DOUGLAS KELLEY, FORMER ASSISTANT U.S. ATTORNEY IN MINNESOTA: Yes. And Laura, let me just say it's an honor to appear on a fellow alumnus T.V. program. Thank you for having me.

COATES: I'm glad you're here.

KELLEY: There you go. And in terms of the Insurrection Act, I think you hit the nail on the head in your introduction. It is really meant to be used when the civil authorities are overwhelmed and just cannot manage a crisis. And past presidents have interpreted that way. And presidents have been very sparing and use it only in very important kinds of circumstances.

Unfortunately, I read one commentator, Laura, that said the Insurrection Act is dangerously overbroad and ripe for abuse. And we happen to know that this president likes to push the limits when he can. And it makes it seem as though he may go ahead and do it. I think it's an inappropriate --

COATES: Have any statements -- I want to ask you. Have any statements that had been made by either the governor or the mayor or local officials or any activity that you have seen through reporting, does any of that add justification for Trump if he were to try to invoke it to suggest that it is not under the control of local officials?

[23:25:05]

KELLEY: No. I don't think any of the comments that I have heard would justify that it's not in control. I think the governor, the mayor, and the police chief all recognize that it's entirely appropriate for ICE to arrest people who are doing illegal things here in the United States. And the president himself has continued to say we're just going to go after the worst of the worst, and we are targeting people.

I believe that the governor and the mayor and all of them have said that's fine. But they have also reiterated you have a right to protest, you have a right to take videos. And I think I've heard the governor and the mayor each say, but please be peaceful when you do it.

And I would just say, Laura, that in the past, for example, when you have a substantial part of the southern states where the governor opposed integration of schools and so forth, that's the kind of justification that you would normally invoke to bring in the Insurrection Act.

And the governor just saying, you have the right to protest, please do it peacefully, I probably wish he wouldn't have said, take pictures and we can use them for future prosecutions. I think that was unnecessarily inflammatory. But by the same token, I do not think that it justifies the use, such as a governor saying, we will not integrate the schools of Little Rock, Arkansas. It's just not the same.

COATES: No, it is not, and yet the same act being at least dangled for very different reasons. You know, the family of Renee Good, who was killed a week ago yesterday, well, they have hired a law firm to do its own civil investigation, and they sent a letter demanding the government preserve all evidence in the case. I want to play for you what their lawyer said tonight.

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ANTONIO ROMANUCCI, LAWYER FOR FAMILY OF RENEE GOOD: I would love to have all the confidence in our government doing what they're supposed to do. But because we know that we're getting stonewalled, our level of confidence decreases, and that's why we have to take the steps that we're taking.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Distrust, a through line in this conversation. But can they force the federal government to cooperate and preserve or even relay the information?

KELLEY: Well, I think a litigation hold would be appropriate for the feds to observe. Clearly, the feds are not going to cooperate with them as they do their investigation.

And, by the way, Laura, I think if I were a civil lawyer representing the family, I would conduct the investigation as well, gather whatever evidence you could because I think those tapes -- and I don't want to judge the tapes yet because we still keep -- pieces of evidence keep coming out. That could affect the outcome of the investigation.

But I think one of the sad things here is that, you know, the feds started off right away with Kristi Noem saying that she was a domestic terrorist and all that stuff. I think the feds ought to preserve the evidence because they know they're going to be sued.

COATES: And, of course, burden of proof different when it's a private litigant and, of course, a lower burden as well. Douglas Kelley, thank you.

KELLEY: You bet.

COATES: Ahead, the ACLU is suing the Trump administration, alleging citizens are being racially profiled. Next, I'm going to talk with a man who says it happened to his mother outside of their family restaurant. Plus, new polls show growing backlash against ICE. But tonight, the administration has a plan to fix it. What Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, is now suggesting. I'm going to tell you, next.

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COATES: So, remember how the administration vowed to go after the most violent criminals in their immigration crackdown across the country, let alone Minneapolis, people they see as the -- quote -- "worst of the worst." Well, it seems as though with each day, there are new reports of case after case where U.S. citizens and legal residents, often those with no criminal history, say that they are being racially profiled by federal agents, like the mother of my next guest, Alex Escoto.

He says his mother, Irma, who you see pictured here on the right, is a citizen who was born in the United States, and that last Sunday, three ICE agents approached her car outside their family's taco restaurant in West St. Paul, where they asked her if she's an immigrant and in the country legally. Now, surveillance footage shows that just moments later, his father, Luis, rushed outside with his mother's passport card to get the agents to leave her alone. Here's what his father said following that encounter.

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LUIS ESCOTO, HUSBAND OF PERSON RACIALLY PROFILED BY ICE: They're going to break the window.

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They're going to drag her out, jumping on the snow bank. All those things came to my mind. I love this country. They asked me to give my life for it. I will give for my country. And it's so sad to see that they're destroying it. It's so sad that they're doing what they're doing now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Heartbreaking to hear him. Luis and Irma's son, Alex Escoto, joins me now. Alex, I am just -- my heart breaks for that emotional response from your father. Can you describe what you are feeling when you hear what he has to say and also that the agents confronted your mother?

ALEX ESCOTO, MOTHER WAS RACIALLY PROFILED BY ICE: You know, my father raised us to be American first. You know, we're from Mexican descent. That's who we are. That's our culture. We were born here in America. And he always taught us that we were going to be treated like everybody else, that nobody was ever going to treat us differently, that that was something we never have to worry about.

And what has done has shaken me recently. Even watching that video of my father right now kind of hits me to heart because it has broken his heart, and that man is my hero. And to have to see how he feels about this country that he always considered great is just heartbreaking.

COATES: And to have him have to try to prove that your mother is a citizen. I mean, our show, by the way, did reach out to DHS for comment, and they told us -- quote -- "allegations that ICE engages in 'racial profiling' are disgusting, reckless and categorically false. A person's immigration status makes them a target for enforcement, not their skin color, race or ethnicity." But you see it differently. What's your reaction?

ESCOTO: Yes. Look, if that was true, if it wasn't about skin color, if it wasn't about race, every time ICE shows up to bring someone in and they're going to question the people around just like -- like earlier this afternoon when I was watching that video, you have to consider that they'd be asking everybody that's in that local facility, what's your background, where are you from, are you born in this country?

It's convenient that the only person being asked is the person of color, my mother, right? My father, you know, isn't as concerned about it. He's a little bit lighter skinned. But my mom being brown, sitting in her car, doing nothing else but about to go home, is the one person question.

And I don't understand how that can be seen any other way, right? I mean, if there was another person out there who wasn't brown, who they asked for their I.D. to figure out what they, you know, where they came from, then I would agree, fine, it's everybody. That's not what's happening. We're seeing it across here in the state of Minnesota that it's

consistently happening, people being asked what their citizenship is, and it's typically the person who has the brown skin.

COATES: I mean, your father's first instinct was to grab your mother's passport card. And when I was there, I talked to many people who were considering having to carry something around to prove that they were American and might even walk around with passports out of fear of being stopped.

Today, Secretary Noem said that ICE will ask people to, her phrase was, validate their identity. Could this become the new normal? And if so, what's the risk and consequence?

ESCOTO: The worst case, not everybody is always going to carry an I.D. with them. OK? And I'll give you a perfect example of this. I've got a 16-year-old son who is afraid to go outside, was afraid to walk down the street. And what happens if ICE agents come up to him and go, what's your citizenship? Where were you born? Do you have an I.D.? I don't.

There are many stories out there that are showing people who have been taken to these detention centers simply because they can't prove their citizenship with a piece of a document or it's not good enough for the ICE agents. I mean, there are people who are being taken in who have those documents. And simply because they don't believe them, they spend eight hours in detention. Those are the type of things that we're moving towards. And it's very concerning to have to see that. It shouldn't be that way.

Look, nobody is against saying, you know, illegal immigrants need to be taken back to their country. We understand that's going to happen. It's a game that we play. But when it comes down to the only reason you're being singled out is for how you look and you have to prove where you're from, that's heartbreaking.

COATES: As a mother, just thinking about a teenager or a child who might look older as an adult to this law enforcement and being scared and confused and not knowing what to do, I don't know how anyone can sleep well with those thoughts in their mind. Alex Escoto, thank you so much.

ESCOTO: Thank you.

COATES: The new signs that the ICE crackdown is backfiring for the administration as the border czar suggests he has a fix to try to win the public over.

[23:40:02]

Well, this thought will be interesting (ph). It's next.

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COATES: Some of the dramatic scenes and stories you've seen and heard in Minneapolis may be starting to break through with the public because, according to new CNN polling, 51 percent say that ICE enforcement in cities is making them less safe, 56 percent say Renee Good's killing was not an appropriate use of force, and, you know, overall, 58 percent of Americans disapprove of President Trump's overall handling of immigration.

[23:45:08]

With me now, former Republican congressman turned Democrat, Joe Walsh, and CNN political commentator and Republican strategist, Shermichael Singleton. I want to begin with this, Shermichael, because I want to play for you both what the border czar, Tom Homan, had to say on Fox News actually tonight when he was asked if he was concerned about the polling that I've just referenced. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM HOMAN, BORDER CZAR: I think it's being done by the press. I think there's a lot of false media out there. I think we need to be better at messaging what we're doing. Look, bottom line is 70 percent of everybody arrested is a criminal. We need to start advertising that every single day and putting their pictures all over social media.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: This is a messaging problem?

SHERMICHAEL SINGLETON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, I mean, in terms of the polling, you know, is this a snapshot or is this polling data that will persist for several weeks and several months? That's how I would gauge it as a strategist to make determination of how significant this could or might become in terms of the midterms upcoming.

That said, I do agree you need to let the public know who you're arresting. I also think, in terms of overall operational efficacy, you have got to work with state and local policing in doing this. We have done numerous joint task force. You're familiar with this as a former federal prosecutor. We can do this here. Minneapolis is slightly different as they are sanctuary state city. So, that makes this a little more complicated. But there are number of other cities where you can have that joint task force.

And I'll tell you why I think this is important for two reasons, Laura. Number one, local police know where people are in their communities, who aren't in the country legally, number one. Number two, they're trained and have significant experience dealing with the general public, how to preserve people's constitutional rights. They can manage that aspect of it while ICE do their job of arresting people who are here illegally. That's the way I would go about this.

JOE WALSH, PODCAST HOST, FORMER ILLINOIS REPRESENTATIVE: Laura, the polling is bad for ICE and the polling is bad for Trump because the American people are horrified by what they're seeing. I mean, pull back for just a moment. Day after day after day, for weeks and months, we've seen untrained, unsupervised, heavily armed, masked federal agents terrorizing neighborhoods on streets, grabbing 82-year-old Latino woman. That story, Laura, you just played, a Latino one outside a taco restaurant just racially profiled.

The American people didn't vote for this. The American people are not used to seeing this. They believe it's wrong, and they're outraged.

COATES: So, there's the underlying policy that I've heard both Democrats and Republicans discuss as wanting to have an appropriate and functioning immigration system.

SINGLETON: Yes.

COATES: This is about tactics, though.

SINGLETON: Yes.

COATES: This is about also the campaign promise of the worst of the worst, and that is a huge disconnect from what we're seeing. I saw that Karoline Leavitt put up the pictures of people to suggest that the yearbook photos she showed was the totality of people that perhaps were being taken. But it's the tactic of citizens being called as well, taken, asked about proving their American-ness. How did the Republicans overcome that?

SINGLETON: Look, I don't think you want to blur those lines. Politics is ultimately about optics. You know this. You may be wrong in a lot of issues. If you win the messaging war, then people may more than likely vote for you over your opponent, who may be more correct on a particular issue.

COATES: So, is this winning the messaging war or compromising it?

SINGLETON: No. I think you got to be careful here, right? Republicans are going to stick with the president. I'm not worried about that. I'm not really worried about Democrats. They're not going to vote for Republicans, anyway. The only group that I as a strategist would be watching are independents, particularly those independents that may swing to the right.

And some of those non-traditional voters that we saw that came out during the last president or most recent presidential who did vote for Trump and other Republicans, you want to watch those numbers. You want to see how those numbers are moving.

And, again, Laura, polling is a snapshot. So, I want to be careful by saying this one particular poll is decisive in terms of how voters are going to vote come November, but it is something that strategists would pay attention to.

COATES: I would assume that the memory of voters, even though November does feel further away, could be short. Do you think that Democrats being in the minority, they have a pulpit, they have a soapbox, do they have any power here?

WALSH: The power is in the videos. Eighty-six percent of the American people, that's an astounding number, have seen these videos of the brutality and the lawlessness of ICE every single day. That's going to carry the day. The American people are reacting to what they're seeing, and they don't approve, period.

COATES: Some are also seeing, though, you know, agents, as alleged by DHS, being attacked and assaulted, cars being kicked and beyond. Is that having an impact as well that would flip that?

WALSH: We talked about this before. I think, because the sight of masked federal agents terrorizing neighborhoods on our streets is something the American people aren't used to seeing, that's carrying the day.

[23:50:04]

SINGLETON: Well, I think the polling may be relevant for the immediate being now. But to your question about Democrats, I mean, they're net approval is congressionally worse than Trump. And among independents, significantly worse. And so, I'm not necessarily certain, Joe, that they can captivate this moment with those types of approvals beyond just what we're seeing in front of our eyes.

WALSH: Oh, I agree. I think my new party is kind of feeble politically. But this is Trump. Trump wants the cruelty and the fear in the videos. And the American people are recoiling from what they're seeing.

COATES: What about Secretary Noem suggesting you have to validate identities? I mean, proving it? That -- it's a recipe for disaster.

SINGLETON: I think it is a recipe for disaster. Now, that's something that I wouldn't necessarily agree with. I think you're going to run into an issue where you start inadvertently pulling people over who are American citizens.

And look, I'm a conservative. The Constitution matters to me. I support addressing immigration. I think it is an issue that went unaddressed for four years. I think the tactics do matter. But you cannot violate American citizens' constitutional rights. That's just too important to our Republic.

COATES: Tell someone to prove you're American. That's not going to go over well with any party. But what did go over well today was the Venezuelan opposition leader, Maria Machado, giving Trump her Nobel Peace Prize. Now, it's not transferable, OK? You can't give it away. But he can go ahead and keep it. And he's calling it a wonderful gesture. This is where we are? This is --

WALSH: Go ahead. I can't -- Laura, I can't laugh about this. This is pathetic. I can't even smile about it. He's a two-year-old. And you've got to give him toys to try to get him to do something.

SINGLETON: Well, look, regardless of what you think, this woman is trying to save her country. And it would be easy for me Monday morning quarterback and say you shouldn't have to do this because of the president's --

WALSH: She shouldn't have done it. SINGLETON: But she did, Joe, because this is a woman where 8 million people have left her country. And she wants the support of the United States. And she's doing every single thing that she believes is necessary to get that standing.

WALSH: Right.

SINGLETON: And I say I applaud her for doing that.

WALSH: She acknowledged we have a two-year-old in the White House, and I've got to give him a toy to get my way. Pathetic.

COATES: Will it -- will it actually benefit her in being able to --

WALSH: No.

COATES: You say no.

WALSH: No.

COATES: How about Venezuela?

WALSH: Probably not Venezuela either. All Trump cares about is the oil.

SINGLETON: I don't -- I don't know. I think Venezuela is not -- the oil is important, but I think it's also about hemispheric supremacy. I'm not too much worried about Russia, but I'm absolutely worried about China in part because most oil is traded in U.S. dollar. I think this is an attempt by China to challenge the petrodollar. You got to get them out of our hands.

WALSH: I'm worried about all the money that Trump has grabbed for the oil. That's now in some Qatar bank account.

COATES: I'll tell you something --

SINGLETON: How do you know that, Joe?

COATES: Let me get -- oh, it was rhetorical (ph). Sorry. OK. The context --

WALSH: No --

COATES: Hold on. I'm going to read for you what the current interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, had to say.

WALSH: Oh, yes.

COATES: Quote -- "And if one day, as acting president, I have to go to Washington, I will do so with my head held high, not on my knees." Hmm. All right, well, in the interest of giving things away, I'd like you to give him your wallet.

(LAUGHTER)

SINGLETON: Well, thankfully, it's at my house.

(LAUGHTER)

COATES: Joe, Shermichael, thank you both. Thank you so much. Still ahead, the champ gets his stamp. A special tribute to the greatest, Muhammad Ali.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COATES: It's almost midnight here in the nation's capital, which means it is time to bring in our friend, Elex Michaelson, out in Los Angeles, fresh off a long, wonderful show last night, and here you are back with us. So, since you were the greatest, let's talk about the greatest, Muhammad Ali. He did not have a special postage stamp until today. Why did it take so long?

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: I don't know. How is that even possible?

COATES: I don't know.

MICHAELSON: Because if you think of among the greatest Americans, it's also amazing if you think about Muhammad Ali's life and, of course, back in the 60s, when he evaded the draft, and the country went after him, and there was prosecution and everything else. To think how his life story has come to the point where he's now on a postage stamp as a symbol of greatness is quite something.

COATES: I love it. I'm a huge fan of his story. I'm so glad you shared even a small part of it. I want you to hear what his widow what had to say at today's unveiling ceremony. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LONNIE ALI, MUHAMMAD ALI'S WIDOW: I personally am so ecstatic that this is happening today. And I know Muhammad is here in spirit. And he is jumping up and down and told you, I told you I was pretty, I told you I couldn't be licked unless I was on a stamp.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

COATES: Well, she asked the people. Pause and think about what message they're sending. Next time they go to send that letter or that text or that email, make sure that they are lifting people up. And that's the legacy she hopes these stamps certainly carry. So wonderful. And people should visit the Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky. It's wonderful to see. Tell me about your show tonight.

MICHAELSON: We've got a great show. All over the map. I'm talking about immigration. We also have Evan Spiegel, who is the founder of Snapchat, who's really involved in the L.A. fire recovery efforts. We'll be talking about big changes when it comes to sports betting. We've got a lot going on in the next couple hours.

[23:59:58]

And an exclusive of a bill that's going to make news around the country. That's coming out of California. We'll have exclusive details tonight as well.

COATES: Well, now, I can't wait to hear all about it. Have a great show, Elex.

MICHAELSON: Thanks, Laura.