By Chip Cutter and Sarah Nassauer

Sunday's public letter from more than 60 Minnesota-based CEOs urging a de-escalation of tensions came together after an emergency call and a flurry of texts among local business leaders over the weekend.

Informal conversations among some of the CEOs started over a week before but many executives were reluctant to sign a statement before this weekend, people familiar with the effort said. CEOs didn't want to appear as if they were opposing Trump administration immigration policies and some worried any comments could trigger a political backlash, they said.

After the killing of Alex Pretti on Saturday, a group of CEOs felt compelled to act, said Bill George, a former CEO of Medtronic who has been in touch with local executives and lawmakers in recent days.

"It is extremely difficult to get all these CEOs to agree on such a clear statement, especially one that might have political consequences," George said. But many fear "the current conflict has negative potential consequences in their ability to grow, innovate and attract top talent from around the world to work in Minnesota."

The message was edited repeatedly as more businesses signed on, requesting changes to the text. By Sunday, a critical mass-- including Target, Best Buy, 3M, Medtronic, U.S. Bancorp, Ecolab and UnitedHealth--had agreed to put their names and logos to the statement, which urged federal, state and local officials to work together but stopped short of criticizing the recent killings of Pretti and Renee Good, both Minnesota residents, by immigration agents.

As of Monday, several more companies had joined, including food giant Schwan's Company and the electronics supplier Waytek.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 26, 2026 17:54 ET (22:54 GMT)

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