Donald Trump is facing a growing backlash against his immigration crackdown after a second man was killed in Minneapolis by federal agents, leading some Republicans to break ranks and Democrats to threaten a government shutdown.
Protesters took to the streets across the US in freezing conditions over the weekend after 37-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretty was shot dead by immigration agents on Saturday.
“I think the deaths of Americans that we’re seeing on TV are creating deep concerns over federal strategy and accountability,” Kevin Stitt, the Republican governor of Oklahoma, told CNN’s Face the Nation. “Americans don’t like what they’re seeing right now.”
Asked whether federal immigration agents should be pulled out of Minnesota, Stitt, president of the Republican Governors Association, said: “I think the president has to answer that question… and he’s getting bad advice right now.”
Other senior Republicans also expressed concern over the killing because video footage contradicts authorities’ claims that Preeti had violently resisted attempts by Border Patrol agents to disarm him.
Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy said, “The events in Minneapolis are incredibly disturbing.” He said the credibility of the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agencies on the front lines of the raid, was now at stake.
Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina called for a “thorough and impartial investigation” into the shooting.
Tillis said, “Any administration official who rushes to a decision and tries to shut down an investigation before it begins is doing an incredible disservice to the country and to President Trump’s legacy.”
Senator Lisa Murkowski said the incident “should raise serious questions within the administration about the adequacy of immigration-enforcement training and the instructions given to officers”.
“ICE agents have no qualms in carrying out their duties,” the Alaska Republican said.
Protests are rising across the US against the White House’s tough stance on immigration, with federal agents swarming several Democratic-led cities to detain undocumented immigrants.
In a rare intervention, former Democratic President Barack Obama said Sunday that the shootings were “a warning to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under attack”.
Senate Democrats threatened Sunday to block a major government funding package if it included money for DHS, raising the prospect of a new federal shutdown as soon as next week, just months after Washington emerged from its longest official shutdown ever.
Eliza Slotkin, a moderate Democratic senator from Michigan, said, “As all Americans can see with their own eyes, ICE and those under their command are not acting as responsible law enforcement agencies.”
“They are recklessly inciting violence at the whim of the President. They must be restrained before more killings occur.”
The fallout also spilled over into the corporate world, with CEOs of more than 60 Minnesota-based companies calling on lawmakers to step in to defuse the situation.
“With yesterday’s tragic news, we are calling for an immediate de-escalation of tensions and for state, local and federal officials to work together to find real solutions.” wrote to the chiefs Among major companies are 3M, Best Buy, General Mills, Target, UnitedHealth and many more.
Trump administration officials continued Sunday to maintain that Preeti threatened agents with a gun, despite video footage contradicting those claims.
Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino told CNN that “the victims are Border Patrol agents there”. On Saturday he said his officers had prevented a “massacre”.
In the footage of the incident, a mobile phone is visible in Preeti’s hand but she is not waving the weapon. In clips from different angles, Preeti is seen attempting to help another protester who was pepper sprayed before being wrestled to the ground by agents, who then fired several shots at close range. In one clip, a federal agent is seen apparently disarming Preeti before shooting her multiple times.
Criticism of Pretty — who had a gun license — over his possession of the weapon angered gun ownership groups, traditionally a strong part of the Republican coalition. The National Rifle Association said any suggestion that law enforcement is justified in shooting someone because they are armed is “dangerous and wrong”.
The NRA said, “Responsible public voices must wait for a thorough investigation, not generalize, and not insult law-abiding citizens.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Besant on Sunday accused local Democratic officials of “sowing chaos.”
“I think there are a lot of paid agitators who are hoarding things and the governor hasn’t done a good job of curtailing it,” he said.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz dismissed the DHS report into the shooting as nonsense.
“What I see with my own eyes and what you’re going to see with your own eyes, it’s quite hard to believe,” he said.
Preity’s family released a statement saying they were “saddened but also very angry” and condemned the comments.
“The vile lies told by the administration about our son are condemnable and disgusting,” the Preeti family said. “Alex was clearly not holding a gun when Trump was assassinated and attacked by cowardly ICE thugs.”
Protests broke out across the country on Saturday in response to Preeti’s death, despite freezing cold conditions caused by Winter Storm Fern.
In New York, thousands of people took to the streets of Manhattan demanding the abolition of ICE. In Washington, footage showed hundreds of protesters gathering outside DHS headquarters.
Similar incidents occurred in Los Angeles and San Francisco, while protesters clashed with officers in Minneapolis at the site of the shooting throughout Saturday afternoon. Authorities deployed tear gas, batons and flashbang devices to push back the crowd.
The shooting has also escalated a bitter standoff between state and federal officials.
Democratic local officials and Minnesota law enforcement officials said Saturday that they were denied access to the shooting site, underscoring tensions between the Trump administration and officials in the state.
Ahead of a hearing on Monday, a judge on Saturday night granted a temporary order blocking federal officials from destroying evidence after the lawsuit was filed by the Minnesota Attorney-General’s Office.
Additional reporting by Peter Andringa
