“Time To Arm Up” – Antifa Leader DECLARES WAR On ICE

A Minneapolis-based influencer with 36,000 Instagram followers just publicly called for armed guerrilla warfare against federal immigration agents, and the disturbing part isn’t just his inflammatory rhetoric—it’s that state leadership may have paved the way for this violence.

Story Snapshot

Kyle Wagner, a self-identified Antifa influencer, posted Instagram videos urging followers to “get your guns” and wage “guerrilla war” against federal agents following two fatal Border Patrol shootings in Minneapolis within weeks.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz repeatedly claimed ICE and Border Patrol are “not law enforcement,” echoing rhetoric that portrays federal agents as illegitimate kidnappers rather than officers enforcing immigration law.
Wagner solicited large donations via Venmo for an unspecified “emergency freedom and defense fund” while riots erupted in Minneapolis streets, mirroring the chaos that followed the 2020 George Floyd protests.
Law enforcement experts warn that political leaders denying federal authority create dangerous conditions, citing how misinformation fueled 2020 violence when liberals vastly overestimated police killings of unarmed Black Americans.

When Inflammatory Rhetoric Meets Armed Resistance

Kyle Wagner’s videos left nothing to interpretation. Standing near protest crowds waving inverted American flags and chanting “ICE out,” he declared it was “time to suit up” and explicitly told his followers to arm themselves. His message rejected peaceful demonstration entirely, framing the confrontation as a Second Amendment obligation to physically stop federal agents. Wagner, who sports a “Three Arrows” Antifa tattoo and describes himself as a “master-hate-baiter,” transformed a local tragedy into a fundraising opportunity, soliciting money without disclosing how he’d use these “large sums.” The timing matters: his call to arms came hours after Border Patrol fatally shot an armed man just four blocks from Wagner’s residence during a tense confrontation.

The January incident wasn’t Minneapolis’s first deadly encounter with federal immigration enforcement that month. On January 7, Border Patrol shot Renee Good after she accelerated her vehicle toward an agent, striking him. Her partner later questioned whether agents used “real bullets,” a comment that underscores the dangerous disconnect emerging between reality and perception. Both shootings involved armed threats according to Department of Homeland Security accounts, yet protesters and influencers like Wagner frame these as unprovoked assaults. This gap between documented facts and street-level narratives creates combustible conditions where misinformation doesn’t just spread—it weaponizes.

Political Leadership and the Legitimacy Crisis

Governor Tim Walz’s repeated assertions that ICE and Border Patrol are “not law enforcement” didn’t happen in a vacuum. These statements came as federal immigration enforcement intensified in 2026, with agents conducting operations that progressive politicians characterized as overreach. But ICE holds statutory authority as federal law enforcement with nationwide arrest powers, established in 2003 following September 11th reorganization. Walz’s rhetoric didn’t just question policy—it fundamentally challenged the legal standing of federal officers, effectively painting them as rogue actors rather than agents operating under Congressional mandate. Law enforcement commentator Travis Yates argues this creates “chaos,” drawing parallels to how 2020’s distorted statistics fueled violence.

The Skeptic Research Center study Yates cited reveals how dangerous propaganda becomes when it replaces facts. Liberals surveyed believed police killed approximately 10,000 unarmed Black Americans annually when the actual number was 12. That thousandfold exaggeration didn’t just misinform—it motivated rioters who believed they were responding to an epidemic of police murders that didn’t exist. When political leaders now deny ICE’s law enforcement status while influencers call for armed resistance, history isn’t just rhyming—it’s repeating with potentially deadlier consequences. Minneapolis, already scarred by 2020’s riots, faces renewed unrest fueled by the same toxic mixture of political rhetoric and social media amplification.

The Antifa Ecosystem and Monetized Extremism

Wagner represents a newer breed of activist-entrepreneur who monetizes rage. His Instagram presence blends revolutionary aesthetics with direct fundraising appeals, creating a business model where conflict generates cash flow. The decentralized nature of modern Antifa networks means no hierarchical leadership approves or coordinates actions—influencers like Wagner operate independently, building personal brands around anti-fascist ideology while soliciting donations for vaguely defined causes. His “emergency freedom and defense fund” pitch came packaged with violent rhetoric, raising questions about whether he’s funding legal defense, purchasing equipment, or simply exploiting crisis for personal gain. No disclosure accompanied his Venmo request.

This decentralization makes Antifa particularly difficult for law enforcement to counter. Unlike traditional organizations with identifiable leadership, modern anti-fascist networks function as loose coalitions of individuals who coordinate through social media rather than formal structures. Wagner’s 36,000 followers represent potential mobilization capacity, not membership rolls. His explicit rejection of peaceful protest in favor of Second Amendment solutions marks an escalation from property destruction toward armed confrontation. Federal agents already work in increasingly hostile environments; calls for “guerrilla war” from influencers with significant reach transform abstract tensions into concrete threats. The fact that Wagner’s videos remained online days after posting, with no reported arrests, suggests authorities face challenges responding to incitement that stops just short of explicitly illegal directives.

The Dangerous Intersection of Misinformation and Violence

What happens when citizens genuinely believe federal agents are illegitimate kidnappers rather than law enforcement? The Minneapolis situation provides a real-time case study. Protesters who accept Governor Walz’s characterization of ICE as “not law enforcement” aren’t simply exercising First Amendment rights when they confront federal agents—they believe they’re resisting unlawful force. Wagner’s armed resistance rhetoric finds receptive audiences precisely because political leaders undermined federal legitimacy first. This creates a self-fulfilling cycle where denied authority produces confrontation, confrontation produces violence, and violence reinforces the narrative that agents are dangerous rather than endangered. The two fatal shootings involved armed individuals and vehicular assault according to federal accounts, yet protesters frame these as murders.

The broader implications extend beyond Minneapolis. If political leaders in one state can effectively declare federal law enforcement illegitimate within their borders, what prevents this model from spreading? Immigration enforcement already varies dramatically by jurisdiction due to sanctuary policies, but questioning whether ICE agents are actual law enforcement represents a categorical escalation. Federal authority either exists or it doesn’t—there’s no middle ground where governors decide which federal agencies their citizens must respect. Common sense suggests that agents enforcing congressionally-enacted immigration law deserve the same legitimacy as FBI agents or federal marshals. When that legitimacy erodes through political rhetoric and social media incitement, the rule of law itself becomes negotiable. Wagner’s call to arms may be extreme, but it’s the logical endpoint of denying federal authority altogether.