The federal immigration crackdown is deepening staffing shortages at Twin Cities child care centers, forcing some providers to cut hours or close classrooms as immigrant workers stay home out of fear.

Why it matters: The growing shortages in Minnesota's already understaffed child care industry could force some parents to leave the workforce to care for their kids, a recent national report suggests.

The latest: The anxieties stem from multiple reports of parents and staff encountering federal agents around child care centers in recent weeks.

• ICE officers removed a teacher from her car just outside a Minneapolis location of Jardin Spanish Immersion Academy, where she was about to begin work, the Star Tribune reported.
• One anonymous Spanish immersion child care center told KARE 11 that agents detained multiple workers who had legal work authorization in the center's parking lot.
• The leader of another unidentified center told KSTP that "nearly half of her staff has stopped coming to work."

What they're saying: Dawn Uribe, who owns four Mis Amigos Preschool locations in the Twin Cities, told MPR News she set up a food pantry for staff who aren't working.

• Her admin team is working in classrooms to cover for breaks so centers don't fall below their required staff ratios, she added.

The big picture: In Minnesota, 14% of the early education workforce was born outside the U.S. — and data analyzed by the think tank New America suggests their fears about going to work will have ripple effects.

By the numbers: Nationwide, from January to July 2025 — early in the Trump administration's crackdown — about 39,000 foreign-born child care workers dropped out of the workforce, the report's authors concluded.

• During that period, 77,000 U.S.-born working mothers with preschool-aged children also left the workforce, New America estimated.

The intrigue: Over the same time span, the number of working mothers of young children dropped 3 percentage points, to its lowest rate since 2021.

• The decline has been primarily driven by white mothers and those who are highly educated leaving the workforce, according to the New America report.

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Federal prosecutors issued subpoenas yesterday to the offices of several Minnesota Democrats, including Gov. Tim Walz, as part of an investigation into the local response to ICE.

Why it matters: It's a significant escalation in the deepening conflict between state and federal officials.

What we know: The offices of Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her and Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty also received the subpoenas.

• Local and state officials targeted by the probe called it a "partisan distraction" and a "baseless" attempt at intimidating them for standing up for their residents.

In other ICE-related developments...

🚔 Local law enforcement officials condemned racial profiling targeting their own officers as they raised concerns that ICE's tactics will undermine public trust in law enforcement.

• Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said one off-duty officer was boxed in and held at gunpoint by federal agents who knocked her phone out of her hand as she tried to film the encounter.
• "If it's happening to our officers, it pains me to think of how many of our community members are falling victim to this every day," he said.

When asked about the comments, Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino told reporters he's observed "very professional law enforcement action" in the field.

⚕️Medical professionals, meanwhile, said ICE's presence at local hospitals is creating "chaos and fear."

⛪️ Leaders of a St. Paul church say they are weighing legal action against activists who disrupted a service to protest a pastor's apparent day job with ICE.

🏛️ President Trump defended the administration's immigration operation at a White House briefing, saying it remains focused on people who lack legal status and have criminal records.

• He called the fatal shooting of Renee Good a "tragedy," while accusing Good's partner of being an instigator, per MPR News.
• "Sometimes ICE is going to be too rough with somebody, or, you know, they're dealing with rough people. Are they going to make a mistake sometimes? It can happen," he said.

🚨 HCMC leaders say they will likely need to cut jobs and reduce services to "keep the hospital open and stabilize operations" in light of serious financial challenges. (Star Tribune)

⚖️ Florida prosecutors dropped a misdemeanor trespassing charge filed against Vikings receiver Jordan Addison in connection with an early morning incident at a Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. (ESPN)

💰 GOP U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer introduced legislation to create a path for revoking naturalized citizenship for people who are convicted of fraud or other serious crimes. (KARE 11)

✈️ Former Northwest Airlines CFO James Lawrence is the new chair of the Metropolitan Airports Commission. (Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal)

🗳️ Former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya announced she is running for U.S. Senate.

• And Keith Ellison announced that he'll remain in the AG race instead of running for governor.

About 130,000 Minnesotans signed up for individual market health plans through MNSure as of the end of December, down 4% from the same point in 2024.

The big picture: Out-of-pocket premiums are skyrocketing for millions of Americans who get their insurance through the Affordable Care Act, due to expiring enhanced subsidies and other factors driving up health care costs.

• Nationally, enrollment in plans offered via state-run exchanges is down 3%, the Star Tribune reports.

What we're watching: Whether more drop off by the end of January, when the first month's premiums are due.

• "We wouldn't be surprised if there are more people than in other years who get that first premium notice and say: 'I'm not going to pay it,'" MNSure CEO said Libby Caulum told the paper.

Minnesota's collegiate cheer and dance teams are returning from this year's national championships with even more hardware.

State of play: The Gophers won their fourth consecutive Division I title for pom and placed third in jazz over the weekend.

• Minnesota State University-Mankato took first place for jazz and pom in the open division.

How it happened: The Gophers overcame a mid-routine fall in the pom routine to eke out a win by just three-tenths of a point, WCCO reports.

In other good sports news: The local synchronized skating team we wrote about last week snagged silver at Poland's Hevelius Cup.