Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) was left visibly stunned after a crowd of Minnesotans erupted in laughter and jeers when she claimed she has long supported border security and worked closely with law enforcement. The moment came as Klobuchar, who is now running to become Minnesota’s next governor, attempted to defend her record on immigration in front of an audience at Minnesota Farmfest. Her claim about supporting “order at the border” barely made it out of her mouth before the crowd reacted, causing the startled Senator to just respond, “Wow.”
The scene took place Wednesday during a gubernatorial candidate forum at Farmfest in Redwood County, Minnesota. Klobuchar appeared alongside several of the leading candidates in the 2026 governor’s race, including Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth, businessman and veteran Kendall Qualls, and former MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell. While much of the forum focused on agriculture and rural issues, the candidates also clashed over immigration, fraud, healthcare, and cooperation between the state and federal government.
When the discussion turned to immigration enforcement, Klobuchar began by attempting to establish her stance on border security and policing. “I have long believed in and supported funding for order at the border, and I have worked well with law enforcement in Minnesota for years,” she told the audience. Before she could move much further, laughter and heckles could be heard from the crowd, leaving Klobuchar staring out at the audience before muttering, “Wow.”
As FOX 9 reported, Klobuchar pushed back at the crowd and pointed to her time as Hennepin County attorney. “I ran the largest prosecutor’s office in the state and was endorsed by police many, many times. So don’t,” she said. The Minnesota senator previously served as Hennepin County attorney before winning election to the U.S. Senate.
Klobuchar shifted away from her claim about border security and attacked her Republican opponents over federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota. “Number two, none of my opponents on this stage condemned what ICE did. Not a word. Not a word,” she said. Klobuchar continued by saying, “Two innocent people were killed, shot in the back. We had many people arrested when they weren’t supposed to be arrested, and we all know that. And we need reform to ICE. We must have reform.”
She went on to criticize the amount of money being directed toward federal immigration enforcement, telling the Farmfest audience she opposed additional funding for ICE. “And if anyone wants to see what happens — $70 billion into ICE, it’s bigger than the FBI now, it’s bigger than the Marines. I did not support that,” Klobuchar said. She argued that the money should instead be directed toward domestic programs, adding, “I think that $70 billion extra dollars should go to you for your health care. That money should go to you, for your housing, and it should go to you for your child care.”
Watch Klobuchar get heckled for her statement here:
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Klobuchar’s “order at the border” wording is not new. A 2006 Senate debate clip later unearthed by Fox News showed Klobuchar taking a substantially tougher-sounding position on illegal immigration during her first campaign for the Senate. “I do believe that we need more resources at the border and that includes a fence,” she said at the time. “We have people waiting to come in legally, thousands of people waiting to come in legally to this country and we have people coming in illegally — that’s not right.”
At the time Klobuchar also called for greater enforcement against businesses employing illegal immigrants while supporting an earned path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants already living in the United States. Years later, during her 2020 presidential campaign, her campaign said she opposed President Donald Trump’s border wall.
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.