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“Arrest them all”: Right-wing media back Trump as he threatens to use the Insurrection Act

Podcaster Tim Pool: “Invoke the Insurrection Act. Round these people up.”

Written by Gideon Taaffe & Torri Lonergan

Published

Posting to his Truth Social platform on January 15, President Donald Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act supposedly because “the corrupt politicians of Minnesota” aren’t stopping “the professional agitators and insurrectionists” from attacking Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Several right-wing media personalities backed him up, saying that it’s “time to do it” and claiming that “Trump’s core base, the hardest core of MAGA” are “the biggest advocate of invoking the Insurrection Act.” 

  • Trump is threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act following some right-wing media figures calling on him to do so

    • Since an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Good on January 7, anti-ICE protesters have taken to the streets in Minneapolis. A federal agent has since shot another man in Minneapolis, where agents have deployed tear gas and flash bangs against protesters. In a Truth Social post on January 13, Trump blamed “anarchists and professional agitators” for “causing” the unrest and promised “THE DAY OF RECKONING & RETRIBUTION IS COMING” to Minnesota. [CNN, 1/15/26; Truth Social, 1/13/26]
    • In a January 15 Truth Social post, Trump said, “I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT” in Minneapolis if “the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law.” He wrote: “If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State.” [Truth Social, 1/15/26] 
    • The Insurrection Act “authorizes the president to deploy military forces inside the United States to suppress rebellion or domestic violence or to enforce the law in certain situations,” according to the Brennan Center for Justice. David Janovsky, acting director of The Constitution Project at the Project on Government Oversight, pushed back on Trump’s threat in a statement: “The Insurrection Act should only be invoked in the most extreme circumstances. That is not what’s happening here. Protests are not rebellions; they are a protected constitutional right.” [Brennan Center for Justice, 4/21/22; Project on Government Oversight, 1/15/26]
    • Prior to Trump’s post, some in right-wing media were already calling for him to invoke the Insurrection Act. On January 12, Fox News host Laura Ingraham repeatedly referred to protesters as “insurgents” and floated the idea that Trump should invoke the Insurrection Act. The same day, right-wing podcast host Vince Coglianese advocated for Trump to “do what so many other presidents have done and actually invoke the Insurrection Act to restore order to places like Minneapolis.” Right-wing streamer Zack Hoyt, popular online as Asmongold, also commented the following day, “I think it's time for the Insurrection Act. I’ve said this before. I think it needs to happen. They have to use it.” [Media Matters, 1/13/26; Rumble, Vince, 1/12/26; YouTube, AsmongoldTV, 1/13/26]

  • Right-wing media call for Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act and make mass arrests

    • Referring to “Trump's core base, the hardest core of MAGA,” War Room host Steve Bannon said, “We're the biggest advocate of invoking the Insurrection Act and going in and cleaning out the mess.” Bannon also said: “The country will back Trump on this. The folks in this country, including Hispanic Americans and African Americans, will back this. They understand it’s their city — it’s their health care that’s being destroyed, it’s their education system that’s being destroyed, it’s their wages that are essentially being garnished.” [Real America’s Voice, War Room, 1/15/26, 1/15/26]
    • Bannon also said, “Insurrection Act first, troops second, mass deportations third.” He claimed, “Bring in the Army and put it down. Invoke the Insurrection Act.” [Real America’s Voice, War Room, 1/15/26]
    • Fox host Trey Gowdy claimed Trump has “all the justification” to invoke the Insurrection Act. Gowdy explained, “Presidents used the Insurrection Act to say you know what, you are going to follow the law. I actually think we may be beyond this point in Minnesota. You actually have governors and mayors who are openly defying federal law enforcement.” [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 1/15/26]
    • Timcast host Tim Pool said, “Invoke the Insurrection Act. Round these people up.” Pool continued, “Insurrection Act now or forever hold your peace because this is escalation we've not experienced before.” [YouTube, Timcast, 1/15/26]
    • Right-wing commentator Benny Johnson said, “Insurrection Act now. Arrest them all.” He said, “Time to do it. I'm totally for it and you should be too,” arguing that the anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis are “the definition of an insurrection” and “worse than anything that happened on January 6.” [YouTube, The Benny Show, 1/15/26]
    • Former acting ICE Director Jonathan Fahey said on Fox News, “I think we’re going down the road of the Insurrection Act,” arguing, “It seems like only one road to go at this point for President Trump, and I think he’s onto this — that we need this to stop.” Fahey argued that Trump can invoke the Insurrection Act, saying, “To invoke the Insurrection Act he just has to make a determination that it is impractical to enforce federal law because of the obstructionist activities, and I think that's apparent just by the reporting you just had.” [Fox News, America’s Newsroom, 1/15/26]
    • Fox host and former Trump White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said, “The president can invoke it when it's impractical to enforce federal law because you cannot enforce normal judicial means due to unlawful obstructionists. I would argue we are very close to that line.” Co-host Emily Compagno agreed, saying, “This is absolutely grounds for that.”  [Fox News, Outnumbered, 1/15/26]
    • Fox guest and former police officer Randy Sutton said, “I understand it. I understand why” Trump would invoke the Insurrection Act, adding, “This is unprecedented behavior from leadership at the state level, at the city level.” Sutton described the anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis as “domestic terrorism” and an “insurrection,” accusing Gov. Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey of “creating this environment that is so deadly for law enforcement as well as the citizens." [Fox News, The Faulkner Focus, 1/15/26]
    • Senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute John Yoo told Fox’s America Reports, “I think that President Trump is right to say he might have to invoke the Insurrection Act in this case.” He continued, saying, “The more you see obstruction of federal installations, the more you see attacks on federal officers, preventing them from doing their legal duty, then the need for the Insurrection Act, unfortunately, is becoming apparent.” [Fox News, America Reports, 1/15/26]