DNC Chair Ken Martin compares Trump’s America to Iran theocracy regime

Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Ken Martin is under fire from Republicans for likening the United States under President Donald Trump to the Islamic theocracy in Iran, accusing both of displaying “authoritarian behavior.”

Martin’s comments came amid protests in Minneapolis and across the country in the wake of last week’s shooting of a 37-year-old Minnesota mother of three by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, and amid a wave of mass demonstrations against Iran’s clerical-controlled government in recent weeks.

Pointing to Martin’s praise of protesters in both countries for “rising up against regimes that engage in violence without accountability,” a spokesman for the rival Republican National Committee said Friday that Martin was “troubled.”

But Martin’s comments appear to have gone down well with many Democrats, with a Democratic National Committee source telling Fox News Digital: “Everyone supports the general gist of what he’s saying.”

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The DNC chair, a former longtime chair of the Minnesota state party, first made the comparison in a social media post last Sunday.

“From Tehran to my hometown of Minneapolis, people are rising up against regimes that practice violence without accountability. In Iran, brave protesters are confronting a far-right theocracy that crushes dissent and denies basic freedoms.” Martin wrote.

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“Here at home, tens of thousands are marching after the fatal shooting of Rene Judd, demanding justice, transparency, and an end to unrestrained federal power that claims lives and tears families apart. Solidarity across borders means opposing authoritarian power everywhere and defending the right to live free from fear and state violence,” he added.

An ICE agent was shot and killed Good last week during a federal enforcement operation in south Minneapolis. Federal officials said agents were trying to make arrests when the woman tried to use her car as a weapon against officers, prompting an ICE agent to shoot in self-defense.

law enforcement members work the scene after a suspected shooting by an ICE agent during federal operations on January 7, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Stephen Maturin/Getty Images)

Top Democrats, including Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim WallsShe criticized the federal account of the incident and rejected the claim that the officer acted in self-defense. Minnesota has since filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, claiming that the state’s increased immigration enforcement is “unlawful” and “unprecedented.”

Effects of the death of goodness Widespread protests in Minneapoliswhere thousands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are now being dispatched, and across the country, as protesters demand changes in the enforcement of federal immigration laws.

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Trump warned Thursday that if Minnesota political leaders don’t stop what he said are “professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking patriots at ICE, who are just trying to do their job, I will pass the Insurrection Act, as many presidents before me have done, and quickly put an end to the farce that is taking place.”

People march during a protest after the fatal shooting of Renee Judd by an ICE agent, on January 8, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Getty Images)

In an opinion piece, the conservative-leaning Wall Street Journal editorial board criticized Martin.

“Exaggerated rhetoric on internal affairs is one thing. Bringing a false image of American tyranny to Iran’s freedom struggle is morally obtuse. It is a slander against his country,” the council wrote in an opinion piece. “He also undermines the Iranian people, who depend on the United States and desperately seek its help, when he says that America is another murderous tyranny, comparable to their own. Mr. Martin has essentially told the Iranians that the United States stands with their regime.”

After Martin’s comparison sparked backlash on social media, he doubled down on his stance.

“If comparing the United States to Iran makes you angry, ask why. Killing protesters, crushing dissent, kidnapping and disappearing lawful citizens, ignoring the courts, threatening critics, terrorizing communities. This is authoritarian behavior — anywhere. If you rush to defend it, maybe the comparison isn’t the problem. Trump keeps pushing it, Americans don’t believe him, and Minneapolis won’t shut up.” Martin said In an additional post on X.

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In this frame from video obtained by the Associated Press outside Iran, a masked protester is seen carrying a photo of Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January 9, 2026. (User generated content via AP)

Republican senator Lindsey Graham, a top Trump ally in the Senate and a long-time supporter of a strong US foreign policy, attacked Martin.

“First of all, Ken Martin is a worthless piece of crap,” Graham said in an appearance on Fox News’ “Hannity.” “Can you imagine this guy fighting for freedom? Comparing President Trump and the Trump regime to the Ayatollah means you’ve got the worst case of Trump Derangement Syndrome in the world. Go to hell.”

In response to Graham’s attack, the Democratic National Committee chairman claimed the senator is “a sniveling, shoe-loving coward who hasn’t had a solid conviction in decades. I will wear his conviction as a badge of honor.”

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In an interview with MS NOW earlier this week, Martin said that “people are very concerned about the violation of basic rights and human rights in this country by its government… This is now what we should be as America, but unfortunately this is what we have become under this administration.”

But Republican National Press Secretary Kirsten Bales claimed Friday in a statement to Fox News Digital that “this is a desperate ploy by a man who has led the Democratic National Committee into financial ruin and political irrelevance. Ken Martin is so disturbed that he compares Tehran to Minneapolis and encourages violent obstruction of federal law enforcement.”

Democrats are feeling energized, thanks in large part to their response to Trump and his unprecedented, sweeping moves in his first year back in the White House. Martin’s controversial comments appear to be well received by his party.

“I think everyone is giving Ken a pass because he’s from Minnesota and Minnesota hasn’t been able to catch a break lately,” a Democratic committee member who requested anonymity to speak more freely told Fox News Digital. “So this is very cruel, very personal, very hurtful for him.”

Asked about the Martin comparison, Maria Cardona, a DNC committee member and longtime Democratic strategist, told Fox News Digital: “This is where the Wall Street Journal got it wrong.”

Cardona stressed that “Ken Martin does not compare tyranny in Iran to Trump’s America.” “He compares Iran’s tyranny to Trump’s tyranny, specifically the absolute impunity Trump has given to lawless ICE agents, their lack of training, being hired without background checks, and the $50,000 bounties that ensure that ICE agents there have no interest and no idea how to follow the law and how to properly and legally track down illegal immigrants and violent criminals.”

When asked about Martin’s comments, veteran Democratic consultant Joe Chiazzo said that “from the rhetoric spread to the policies enacted and executive orders issued, it is clear that Donald Trump likes to be a dictator.”

Three national polls released this week indicated that a majority of Americans do not support the way Immigration and Customs Enforcement is carrying out Trump’s campaign to mass deport millions of illegal immigrants. But there is a wide partisan divide, with Republicans supporting ICE and the president.

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Cardona stressed that “Trump and ICE are losing public opinion on this matter, as the majority of Americans know that this should not happen in the United States of America.”

“If Donald Trump thinks what he’s doing in Minneapolis is going to improve his poll numbers, I think he’s got something else coming,” Martin said in an appearance on MS NOW.

Meanwhile, in Iran, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported that at least 2,677 people were killed in the protests. Other reports put the death toll at more than 3,000, and the real number is likely much higher.

Protests against Iran’s difficult economic conditions, which have escalated rapidly in recent days, are seen as some of the most violent since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that established the current system of theocracy.