St. Paul, Minnesota - In a rare public address, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz issued urged communities to stand up to President Donald Trump's attacks on the state.

As federal agents poured into Minnesota, Walz on Wedensday said news reports "don't do justice to the level of chaos, disruption, and trauma the federal government is reigning down on our communities."

"Donald Trump intends for it to get worse. This week, he went online to promise that quote, 'the day of retribution and reckoning is coming,'" Walz said in a video shared on X, referencing the president's cryptic, insult-laden social media post.

"That's a direct threat against the people of this state who dared to vote against him three times and who continue to stand up for freedom with courage and empathy and profound grace."

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He praised his state for being "an island of decency in a country being driven towards cruelty," and told residents "don't let anyone take that away from us."

Walz also urged Minnesotans to "protest loudly, urgently, but also peacefully," and record any interactions they may have with ICE or other federal agents.

"If you see these ICE agents in your neighborhood, take out that phone and hit record," he urged. "Help us create a database of the atrocities against Minnesotans, not just to establish a record for posterity, but to bank evidence for future prosecution."

Trump administration and DHS announced the launch of Operation Metro Surge in December, which promised to ramp up immigration raids and the deployment of more federal agents across Minnesota, while also launching investigations into allegations of pandemic-era aid fraud that ended Walz's re-election campaign.

The increased presence of agents – most of which wear masks to conceal their identities – and countless reports of abuses and wrongful detentions of has sparked widespread resistance across the state.

Minnesotans have also been on edge following the killing of Renee Nicole Good, who was fatally shot at point-blank range by an ICE agent last week.

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The Trump administration has insisted their federal agents have "immunity," and has sidelined local authorities from investigations into Good's killing.

Hours before Walz shared his address, DHS had announced that the Operation Metro Surge has so far resulted in more than 2,500 arrests, about which it offered no details