MINNEAPOLIS _ Shaken by another night of chaos that overwhelmed law enforcement, Gov. Tim Walz said Saturday he will fully mobilize the National Guard to combat what he called a "tightly controlled" group of outside agitators, some of them from out of state, who have turned city streets into scenes of looting and arson.
The struggle to control the mayhem could bring another 1,000 National Guard soldiers into the cities, supplementing a force of 700, already the largest civil policing authority in the state's history. Law enforcement officials said it would be the first full mobilization of the Guard in Minnesota since World War II.
"Our cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are under assault," Walz said, suggesting that a growing number of rioters are coming from outside the city, and possibly outside the state, in what he called "an organized attempt to destabilize civil society."
Walz said as many as 80% of the people causing destruction and fire in the cities could be from elsewhere. He distinguished the wanton looting and vandalism from the legitimate and mostly peaceful protests that began Tuesday, the day after the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died at the hands of Minneapolis police.
It was not clear if the outside groups suspected to be playing a part in the mayhem are made up of white supremacist agitators, left wing anarchists, or both.
At a news conference just after noon Saturday, Minnesota elected officials and faith leaders urged people to abide by the curfew. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., asked people to stay home tonight instead of taking to the streets: "We cannot move forward when people are burning down our city, burning down our state. That's what we are united behind here today."
Emilia Gonzalez Avalos, executive director of Navigate MN, said the people from the outside who burned down more buildings around Lake Street last night came to "cause more harm and pain in places where there's already harm and pain."
Said U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn.: "I stand here with anger at the evil that is destroying, burning and desecrating the community we love so much."
Authorities said they made about 40 arrests overnight in Minneapolis and St. Paul, mostly for burglary, curfew violations and destruction of property. Hennepin County jail logs showed detainees from Florida, Michigan, Missouri, Illinois and Alaska.
Walz said that while the agitators have gotten the attention they want, he vowed that by Saturday night "they are going to get an overwhelming force of safety, security and peace."
Walz ordered another temporary curfew starting at 8 p.m. Saturday and said peaceful protesters and others who remained outside after that would be "aiding and abetting" vandals who use the crowds as cover.
Walz's announcement came after a third night of violent protests and looting, despite an overnight curfew following the arrest of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who faces murder charges in Floyd's death, captured on video beamed around the world.
The violence spread rapidly until just before midnight and into early Saturday, when hundreds of police officers, state troopers and armed National Guard troops fanned out into areas of vandalism and arson, confronting rioters with tear gas and orders to disperse.
The continuing havoc, which has spread to cities across America, has prompted rounds of recrimination and finger-pointing among state and local leaders about the law enforcement response, which in many parts of Minneapolis had seemed all but undetectable earlier Friday night.
Walz sought to calm the protesters earlier in a 1:30 a.m. news conference with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both making emotional appeals to end the violence.
"The absolute chaos _ this is not grieving, and this is not making a statement (about an injustice) that we fully acknowledge needs to be fixed _ this is dangerous," Walz said. "You need to go home."
Walz said he had talked to Floyd's family and that they agreed what was happening in Minneapolis was horrific and counterproductive.
The DFL governor has come under fire from Republicans in the Legislature calling for a more robust response. "They need to show the force, not have everything hidden behind the scenes," said Senate Minority Leader Paul Gazelka, R-East Gull Lake. "I'm glad that they called the curfew, but when people violate the curfew you have to arrest them."
Walz and the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul acknowledged that police, state patrol and National Guard soldiers were overwhelmed the past two nights by the extent of the rioting and vandalism, which State Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington estimated to involve "tens of thousands" of people.
Maj. Gen. Jon Jensen, adjutant general of the Minnesota National Guard, said that despite the largest show of force in state history Friday night, "it was not enough." He said the governor's full deployment order would mean "the Minnesota National Guard is all in."
Walz said he also has been in touch with military authorities in Washington to discuss logistical and intelligence support as authorities work to regain control of the streets in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Frey and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter joined Walz in calling for peaceful protesters to stay off the streets during Saturday night's curfew, which is aimed at those bent on violence and destruction.
"This is no longer about protesting," Frey said. "This is about violence, and we need to make sure that it stops."
Carter said that while he understands the pain of Floyd's death and the anger against police brutality, the fires and vandalism that have destroyed hundreds of businesses in the Twin Cities are not an appropriate way to protest.
"We will not accept George Floyd's death," he said, "and we will not accept the destruction of our communities either."
