And unrest happening in minneapolis in response to the death of mr. Floyd. Gov. Walz good morning, everyone. This has been the most difficult week in minnesota in recent history and maybe in our entire history. Our community, especially our black community, is hurting beyond words. Minneapolis and st. Paul are on fire. The fires are still smoldering in our streets. The ashes are symbolic of decades and generations of pain, of anguish, much like we failed unheard, much like we failed to hear george floyd as he pleaded for his life as the world watched by people sworn to protect him, his community, our state. Philando castile, silenced, unheard, so many other friends, brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers senselessly died in our street. And now generations of pain is manifesting itself in front of the world, and the world is watching. One of the first people i called after seeing the video was valerie castile, philandos mother. We have become friends since the killing of philando. For those watching today who are not familiar, philando died in front of his loved one and his child and left them behind and the grieving mother who has become an advocate for justice, for reform, but more importantly an advocate for kindness and decency. When i talked to valery, she said first and foremost seek justice, seek fairness and reach out and show kindness. Visceral pain, a community trying to understand who we are and where we go from here. Im joined today by attorney general ellison, by Major General john jensen, colonel linger of the Minnesota State patrol and commissioner john harrington. I spoke this morning with reverend jackson who much like valerie said a prayer for our state. Said a prayer for those grieving, said a prayer for peace, then also said something very important. This is the moment where we start, but every time we get to this place, we never start the process to make sure it doesnt happen again. And that commitment amongst leaders in our community, watching this happen across the united states, watching another name be added, and for those of us old enough, to rodney king, to mike brown and no george now george floyd. The situation on the ground doesnt allow us at this time to tackle those issues. The very efforts in our community, our libraries, businesses, those nonprofits and government entities, our light rail system, are all shut down from this. We have to restore order to our society before we can start addressing the issues. Before we turn back to where we should be spending our energy, making sure that justice is served, justice is served swiftly and the we learn something from what george floyd gave on monday. Now i want to just be very clear. I am going to have the team talk about what transitioned last night when the state assumed responsibility over the security of the third precinct, the state secured critical assets and where the plan Going Forward to ensure tonight our buildings do not burn, our citizens are secure, and that space that we are going to create allows us to get back to the conversation of serving justice and making sure that we are not adding to that list of unheard names. I want to be very clear and speak to that community. The very tools that we need to use to get control, to make sure that buildings are not burned and the rule of law collapses are those very institutional tools that have led to that grief and pain. I understand clearly there is no trust in many of our communities. And the differentiation between the Minneapolis Police department that we witnessed losing trust of those they are there to serve is very difficult for people to make for those standing up here with me. I understand that. I will not patronize you as a white man without living those lived experiences of how difficult that is. But im asking you to help us. Help us use a humane way to get the streets to a place where we can restore the justice so that those that are expressing rage and anger and demanding justice are heard. Not those who throw firebombs into businesses that our community of colors have worked so hard to build back up areas that were blighted at one time and are thriving because of and theirepreneurship hard work. A library in an area where our children, as we know, are institutionally put behind and the achievement gap for our community of color is a shame on this state, that we continue to talk about and dont repair it. The tools to help with that burned last night. I want to just call out very, very clearly as we put our presence on the street to restore order, it is to open that space, to seek justice, and heal what happened. I will not in any way not acknowledge that there is going to be that pain. But my first and foremost responsibility to the state of minnesota is the safety and security of all citizens. We cannot have the looting and the recklessness that went on. We cannot have it because we cannot function as a society. And i refuse to have it take away the attention of the stain that we need to be working on is what happened with those fundamental institutional racism that allows a man to be held down in broad daylight, and thank god a young person had a camera to video it. Because theres not a person here or listening today that wonders how many times that camera is not there. These are tough questions. These are things that have been brewing in this country for 400 years. We have people out there putting themselves on the line to try to put out fires and our firefighters that are under attack. Those are the things i am asking you. Help me restore that order. We will do that under state leadership and state guidance. You will hear directly of them of once that decision is made, and that First Mission was executed around 3 45 at the third precinct, we will see a difference. So im asking you and you will hear from them to talk about this. I also want to think about what happens when we dont have that. People who are concerned about police presence, of an overly armed camp in their neighborhoods that is not seen in communities where children of people who look like me run to the police, others have to run from. So i understand that that is out there. But last night i got a call from a friend and a dedicated public servant. Senator torres rey called, from her district and it was on fire. There werent any police there. There were not any firefighters. There was no social control. And her constituents were locked in their house wondering what they were going to do. That is an abject failure that cannot happen. We must restore order to that. Senator torres reyes fought her whole life on these issues of inequities and making sure that peoples voices are lifted up. What she understands is none of us can lift those voices. None of us can tackle those problems if anarchy reigns on the street. I also want to address an issue and this one is on me and i will own it. Earlier this morning when this mission was carried out, under my direction to resecure the third precinct, to do so in a manner of which i am proud of how it was executed by the team, no injuries and no lossoflife, a reestablishment to put the fires out for those business, a cnn reporter and crew was arrested by the state patrol. A few minutes after hearing that, i was on a call with cnn president jeff zucker who demanded to know what happened. I take full responsibility. There is absolutely no reason Something Like that should happen. Calls were made immediately. This is a very public apology to that team. It should not happen. I want to be clear for those of you listening. I think our minnesota reporters know this. Im a teacher by trade and i have spent my time as governor highlighting the need to be as transparent as possible and have the press here. I failed you last night in that. And it does not escape me that we are here on the catalyst that lit this spark by what happened with the police detainment of george floyd and the idea that a reporter would have been taken while another Police Action was in play is inexcusable. So to cnn, to the cnn team, to the journalists here, this is about having a plan. That is what these folks are going to talk about. This is about having an aggressive approach to understanding what the community needs. To not coming in heavyhanded with them, but to create space where the story can be told. In a situation like this, even if you are clearing an area, we have got to ensure there is a safe spot for journalism to tell the story. The issue here is trust. The community that is down there that is terrorized by this, if they see a reporter being arrested, their assumption is something is going to happen that they dont want to be seen. That is unacceptable. We will continue to strive to make sure that that accessibility is maintained. That not only that, the protection, security and safety of the journalists covering this is a top priority. Not because it is a nice thing to do. Because it is a key component of how we fix this. Sunshine, disinfectant and seeing what is happening has to be done. So again i appreciate president zuckers call. I appreciate his understanding in a situation that he was rightfully, incredibly angry. And that falls squarely on me. That apology has been issued. And i think Going Forward to make sure it doesnt happen again. It is time for us to clean our streets. It is time for us to execute today in a way that shows respect and dignity to communities. Im going to ask for a lot of help today of those folks who want to see it. It is my expectation that justice for the officers involved in this will be swift. That it will come in a timely manner. That it will be fair. That is what we have asked for. I have been in contact with the county attorney. And i am confident that those very things i just said will happen. We will continue at the bca to do a fair, a full, and swift gathering of all of the evidence involved. But i would reiterate again for so many of us, not all of that is done in every other case where all that evidence is gathered before. I would ask that the swift justice be carried out. So minnesotans, your pain is real. The chapter that has been written this week is one of our darkest chapters. And we can choose a few things. We can choose to try and get past this. We can choose to put a force out there and stop things from happening. We can hope that in the midst of covid19 it passes by. And we dont have to turn that mirror to look at the harsh reality of those underlying gaps, whether it be health care disparities, whether it be educational disparities in our communities of color, whether it be policing disparities in our communities of color, whether it ourealth acquisition in communities of color, they are all very real. We pride ourselves on a state of openness. We pride ourselves on a state of being friendly. I have talked a lot about one minnesota. That was not on display last night. I dont naively think everything heals, and you come to the forefront, and you say it will be better. This is a community that demands and should expect more than words. They should expect results. Lieutenant governor flanigan and i have tried to make equity the center of everything we have done. But obviously in minneapolis on monday night, there was not a lot of equity for george floyd. His family is probably wondering where the one minnesota is for them. And that is on us, us as minnesotans. Us as the governor and the team that works with me to put the things in order to establish order in our streets, to establish and rebuild trust in our communities, to lift those voices up to be heard, not pleading for their lives, but demanding the changes necessary so no one else is put into that position. So i would like at this time to turn it over to minnesotas attorney general keith ellison. A. G. Ellison governor, thank you. Martin luther king said many years ago that riot is the way that the unheard get heard. He did not condone it, but he said to the nation as a person who always protested peacefully, that dont just dismiss that and ignore it and relegate it to just criminality and bad behavior. Actually ask yourself what is going on there . And is it something that we as a society absolutely must Pay Attention to . I think we must Pay Attention to it. I would like everyone to recognize the fact that the National Guard just a week ago was administering covid19 tests to help people. To help people. The presence you see on the streets, dont react to them the way you might react to the Minneapolis Police department. It is not the same group. They have different leadership, different authority. And their job is to try to bring peace and calm back again. Please remember that this is not the group that you associate with unfair conduct. But it is a group that in fact just a week ago was trying to make sure minnesotans could survive and thrive and live because we are still in the middle of a pandemic. It is that sense of service, when they get involved, when it comes to natural disasters, storms, floods, rain, diseases, now they have to restore order on the streets. Force. It is making sure everybody can operate peacefully. So please accept it as that. Im asking it of our community. Everybody keeps asking the question, when . When . When . When . When . This is a perfectly legitimate question. It is important to know that under minnesotas statutes, the primary jurisdiction for criminal prosecution is with the county attorney in which the offense occurred. And i believe that the message has been sent and received that the wheels of justice must turn swiftly. Not unjustly, expeditiously, thoroughly, fairly, swiftly. It is important that people have confidence that accountability , no matter who you may be, is how we live in minnesota. Let me also say that this prosecution, this investigation, this criminal process is important, and it is, and the whole country and the whole world is looking at it, cannot solve the problem. As the governor so eloquently said, events like this start and they come to a conclusion, but we never start the process of real reform. I will submit to you that myself and commissioner harrington, under the leadership of the governor, have already started a process on the working group on preventing and reducing Deadly Force Encounters with the police. We have a report that we want attention from the legislature and the entire community on, to focus on that so that we could really get to the bottom of this when it comes to issues of use of force, when it comes to officer wellness, when it comes to community feeling, training issues, all kinds of things to bear on this issue. And it is not just those things. We believe i believe the real work of our working group is the implementation of this. And that really begins in earnest now. And is more important now i think than ever. So i just want to, as i conclude my remarks, i want to say that we have to have the situation where lake street, a precious jewel of our state, is a place where minnesotans can walk again. Where businesses can be safe again. But i want to conclude that if the message was, this situation with with mr. Floyd is intolerable, absolutely unacceptable, it must change, that message has been sent and received as well. And the governor, myself, the lieutenant governor, all of us are committed to that longterm change. I could tell you i spoke with many legislators who feel the same way. People in the Philanthropic Community feel the same way. I think we are going to do some real changing. We are not just going to fix the windows and sweep up the grass. We are going to fix the broken shattered society that leaves so , many people behind based on their historical legacy of being in bondage and servitude, then secondclass citizenship, and now fraught with disparities from conservation to housing to wages and everything else. With that i want to hand it over to general jensen, Major General jensen who will further elaborate. Thank you very much. Maj. Gen. Jensen good morning. I am Major General john jensen, general of thent Minnesota ArmyNational Guard. I have been the adjutant general since november 17. What i will describe this morning very quickly is the actions of the minnesota National Guard since we were mobilized under the governor walzs executive order. Like many minnesotans i woke up yesterday morning to the news that the minneapolis mayor had requested National Guard support. The only difference was i opened up my phone and there was a text from commissioner harrington. It wasnt the newspaper or the morning news that notified me of that. So immediately yesterday morning made contact with the commissioner. And we began planning on the potential deployment of the minnesota National Guard in support of minneapolis. For those of you that may not understand how Emergency Management works in minnesota, i am just going to take a quick moment and explain it. In minnesota Emergency Management coordinators with the cities of minutes minneapolis, st. Paul and dilute outh may request National Guard support through the state e. O. C. So in accordance with that, the minneapolis mayor made that request of the minnesota National Guard, which traditionally comes with the request is the layout of the capability needed and exactly the problem that is trying to be solved. Typically the request for the guard and that type of information comes the same time. Sometimes it lags. So when it lags, what we do is we begin preparing for an unknown mission. But in this case we sort of knew what we might be doing as it related to civil disturbance in minneapolis. It is very important we know exactly what we are being asked to do so we make sure we have the right equipment. We mobilize the right number of soldiers, and the right number of soldiers and airmen who will support those soldiers that are going to conduct the mission. That element was lacking. But with the governors decision to allow me to continue to plan, we began notifying soldiers early yesterday morning of a pending mission. Once we notified our soldiers, again with the governors verbal approval, we began mustering our soldiers and moving them into the metro area, knowing that the most likely probability of deployment was going to be minneapolis. As we met as a senior team yesterday afternoon, the one topic that continued to be discussed was the lack of clarity and the lack of a mission and a description of what exactl