Walz administration officials told state lawmakers at Thursday hearings that M-P-D was still making operational decisions even after state forces were called in to quell Twin Cities riots. Republican Senator Jeff Howe from Rockville says, “[I] truly believe that the governor misled the public saying, hey, we’ve got this, this is on us, we’ve got the lead.” Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington responds, taking back Lake Street was a state-led initiative: “Clear Lake Street to stop the fires, to get the fire trucks to where they needed to go… holding the 5th Precinct, holding downtown Minneapolis and not allowing the Nicollet Mall and the downtown area to burn, helping to support Saint Paul in holding the Midway area.”
But Harrington admitted he misjudged how fast violence escalated in the Twin Cities after George Floyd’s death.