White House Slams Walz Over Trump Criticism, Cites Minneapolis Riots
St. Paul, Minnesota, April 25, 2025 – The White House issued a sharp rebuke to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz following his State of the State address on April 23, where he fiercely criticized President Donald Trump’s immigration policies and leadership style, accusing him of fostering “chaos” and sending deportees to “Salvadorian gulags.” White House Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields fired back, stating, “It’s rich of Tim ‘Jazz Hands’ Walz to decry chaos when he let his largest city burn to the ground while his wife opened their mansion’s windows to savor the fumes,” referring to the 2020 Minneapolis riots after George Floyd’s murder. The retort, widely shared on X, has reignited debate over Walz’s handling of the unrest and Trump’s immigration crackdown.
In his speech, Walz condemned Trump’s deportation of suspected gang members, including those from Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua and El Salvador’s MS-13, to El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT). He claimed Trump’s policies led to “university students being swept up, shoved into unmarked vans, and fathers being tossed into Salvadorian gulags without a hint of due process.” Walz also criticized Trump’s appointment of Elon Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency, alleging it gutted essential services like Social Security and education support. “The President has chosen to tear up the values that once made America the shining light of the world,” Walz declared, earning a standing ovation from Minnesota’s House chamber.
The White House’s response zeroed in on Walz’s record during the 2020 riots, which caused over $500 million in damage, destroyed 1,500 buildings, and resulted in at least three deaths. Fields accused Walz of inaction, noting that he delayed deploying the National Guard despite pleas from Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. A 2020 Minnesota Senate report criticized Walz’s hesitation, stating he initially sent only 100 guardsmen instead of the 600 requested, exacerbating the chaos. Posts on X, including from users like @PastorDale_MN and @PicAxe6, echoed the White House, mocking Walz’s leadership and resurfacing claims that his wife, Gwen Walz, opened windows to “smell the burning tires” during the riots—a claim Walz has denied.
Walz’s defenders argue he faced an unprecedented crisis and ultimately mobilized over 7,000 guardsmen to restore order. They point to a June 2020 call where Trump praised Walz, saying, “I fully agree with the way he handled it,” and called him “an excellent guy.” Critics, however, highlight Walz’s initial underestimation of the riots’ scale and his suggestion that 80% of the violence came from outsiders, a claim later debunked. The White House also tied Walz to Vice President Kamala Harris, accusing them of presiding over “one of the most chaotic administrations in American history.”
The clash underscores broader tensions over Trump’s immigration policies, including his use of the Department of Defense to bypass a judicial order blocking DHS deportations. As Walz pledges to shield Minnesotans from Trump’s “chaos,” the White House’s pointed response signals an escalating war of words, with both sides leveraging past crises to score political points.
