Federal surveillance revealed
Documents show federal agents infiltrated progressive groups and unions in Minnesota
Federal agents in Minnesota secretly surveilled progressive groups, labor unions, and immigration protesters under an operation called "Operation Puppet Master," according to court documents Seattle PI reviewed. The documents were filed in a case involving 15 people charged with conspiring against the federal government.
Department of Homeland Security officers infiltrated private meetings held in churches, schools, and parks. Many of those meetings involved constitutionally protected protest planning, Leader Telegram reported.
Operation Puppet Master Swept Up Major Labor Unions
The scope of the surveillance was broad. The government got years of financial records from some of the biggest labor groups in the country. Those groups included the AFL-CIO, the largest federation of unions in the United States. Federal agents also pulled records from the Service Employees International Union and the Communications Workers of America, according to KTAR.
The operation framed these groups as part of a network helping "violent opportunists and agitators," according to the documents Winnipeg Free Press described. Civil liberties advocates say that label was applied without evidence of actual violence.
DHS Agents Infiltrated Churches and Community Meetings
DHS officers went undercover at gatherings in houses of worship, public parks, and local schools. The meetings they monitored were largely focused on organizing legal protests against the federal immigration crackdown, Yahoo News reported.
Legal experts say attending a protest is protected by the First Amendment. Monitoring those who plan protests — without evidence of a crime — raises serious civil liberties concerns. The documents do not show that agents found evidence of violence at these meetings.
Civil Rights Groups Push Back Hard Against the Investigation
Civil society organizations defended the targeted groups and called the federal investigation an overreach. They said unions and protest organizers were exercising basic constitutional rights, not breaking any laws, according to Leader Telegram.
The 15 people charged in the case were accused of conspiring against the federal government. But the surveillance dragnet reached far beyond those 15 individuals. It pulled in large national organizations with millions of members who had no connection to the charges, Seattle PI noted.
Broader Pattern of Federal Scrutiny Targeting Immigration Protesters
Operation Puppet Master fits a wider pattern of federal action against immigration protest activity. Since the administration's immigration crackdown began, federal agencies have moved to monitor and, in some cases, charge people who publicly oppose the policies, according to KTAR.
The Minnesota case is now drawing national attention. Lawmakers and union leaders are demanding answers about why legal protest groups were placed under covert government surveillance. No federal officials have publicly explained why the AFL-CIO's financial records were needed in a 15-person conspiracy case.
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