According to Gateway Pundit, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has publicly downplayed the incident, even going so far as to claim there is no basis for federal charges arising from the mob’s disruption of a worship service. That stance has drawn sharp rebuke from George Washington University Law Professor Jonathan Turley, who argues that Ellison is effectively behaving as if he were aligned with Antifa-style street agitators rather than serving as an impartial guardian of the law.
On his website, Turley condemned the episode in stark terms, writing, “One would think that a mob action against a church would be something that would transcend political divisions as a grotesque and chilling act. If you thought that, you do not know Keith Ellison.” He noted that even CNN’s Erin Burnett framed the story in terms of “bad optics,” a telling choice that minimized what he described as an “outrageous attack on a house of faith.”
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Turley observed that Ellison refused to object even to the “optics,” instead insisting that the mob’s actions were merely “a First Amendment activity” and “not a crime.” Turley flatly rejected that claim, stating, “He is wrong. Protesting outside of the church is a First Amendment activity. Disrupting church services and abusing congregants inside the church is conduct, not speech.”
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From a rule-of-law perspective, Turley stressed that Ellison “is supposed to enforce state law without favoritism,” yet chose instead to launch a partisan attack on the Trump Administration, quoting Ellison as saying, “If Trump likes you, you can do no wrong.” Turley acknowledged that “There may be good-faith concerns over critics being targeted by this Administration. However, Ellison is the last person who should raise such objections.”
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Turley further criticized Ellison’s “refusal to investigate or prosecute” protesters who “trespassed and engaged in disorderly conduct — putting aside the targeting and disruption of religious services.” He added that Ellison has now “declared that there are no grounds for federal charges. He is wrong. There are a variety of possible federal laws that could be enforced.”
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Reiterating his view during an appearance on FOX News, Turley signaled that accountability is coming, declaring, “This is far from over, but Ellison, Lemon, and others are going to face some kind of justice over this incident. They crossed a line.” For many conservatives, the episode underscores a broader concern: when left-wing activists invade churches and intimidate worshippers, progressive officials seem more eager to shield the agitators than to defend religious liberty and equal enforcement of the law.
