Federal government’s ‘Operation Puppet Master’ surveilled unions, non-profits and residents who protested in Minnesota
What do the Minnesota chapters of the AFL-CIO, Minneapolis Federation of Educators (MFE), Communication Workers of America (CWA) and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) have in common?
Besides being employee unions representing thousands of Minnesotans, according to the federal government, they are all a part of a vast conspiracy "providing material support to violent opportunists and agitators involved in impeding federal law enforcement, rioting, destruction of federal property and assaults on federal agents and officers." That’s how they and others are described in a Department of Homeland Security investigation known as “Operation Puppet Master.”
The investigation began in January, four days after the killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents, and amid sustained protests in Minnesota since the commencement of Operation Metro Surge.
As shocking as the allegations may seem, what’s equally or even more so shocking is, according to a New York Times report, federal operatives have been working undercover, infiltrating meetings, events and online group chats, such as Signal and more, to try and advance a criminal case. In at least two instances, Homeland Security used Operation Puppet Master to go back three years into the financials of an environmental advocacy organization, The Sunrise Movement, and three years worth of wire transfers made by SEIU.
Minnesota AFL-CIO President Bernie Burnham said naming the labor federation as part of the Justice Department’s “unhinged conspiracy theory” relating to the prosecution of 15 Minnesotans and their actions during ICE’s occupation of Minnesota is the furthest thing from democracy.
“Instead of holding federal agents accountable for shooting and killing Renée Good and our union brother Alex Pretti, or addressing the dangerous and deadly conditions within immigration detention facilities, the Trump administration continues to weaponize our federal government to intimidate our unions, our communities and anyone who peacefully opposes their radical authoritarian agenda,” said Burnham in a statement.
Burnham said the Trump administration is bringing back McCarthyism to paint unions and organizations advocating for workers and families as threats to the nation.
“It didn’t work in the 1950s when Joseph McCarthy accused anyone he didn’t like of being unamerican and it won’t work for Donald Trump,” said Burnham.
CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. also quickly issued a statement following the New York Times report.
“Our union has become the latest target of a corrupt administration that weaponizes the legal process against law-abiding Americans exercising our Constitutional rights. CWA is a union that harnesses the power of our collective voice and peaceful protest to stand up for one another, to keep our neighbors safe, and to build good jobs to provide for our families. We are part of a proud tradition of ordinary Americans who join together in union halls and church basements to make this country better,” said Cummings.
He went on to say, “Our values of unity, of community, are under attack by a president and his Department of Homeland Security that sends government spies to surveil community meetings in church basements. But mark my words: CWA is a union with a long history of standing up to bullies and billionaire bosses. We will not be intimidated, and we will not be silenced in our solidarity with our members, with our communities, and with our neighbors.”
Operation Puppet Master has some thinking back to Cointelpro, an illegal government surveillance program that targeted Black organizations during the Civil Rights Movement.
“This document (the recently released Homeland Security memo) should concern every Minnesotan, regardless of their politics,” said Nekima Levy-Armstrong, attorney and advocate for societal justice.
“There is an enormous difference between investigating specific evidence of criminal conduct and placing undercover agents inside groups and organizations engaged in lawful protest or political activity. Minnesotans deserve to know how broad this operation became, who authorized it and whether people or organizations were investigated without evidence they had committed a crime. Those are questions that demand transparency and accountability.”
Power 104.7 reached out to Homeland Security and the department replied, "HSI does not comment on the existence or status of specific on-going investigations, nor on investigative methods. HSI refers all media inquiries concerning this matter to USAO for the District of Minnesota."
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