HUDSON VALLEY- Following the fatal shooting of a 37-year-old Minneapolis man by federal immigration agents, federal elected officials are again weighing in on immigration enforcement and federal spending.
The man, identified as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, was shot and killed early Saturday morning during an enforcement operation in Minneapolis. Federal authorities said he was encountered by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and was armed, prompting an agent to fire. Pretti later died at a hospital. Local law enforcement confirmed Pretti was legally permitted to carry a firearm and had no significant criminal record.
Congressman Pat Ryan (D-NY-18) took to social media Saturday afternoon, urging the U.S. Senate to block funding for ICE. “It’s time to make a choice,” Ryan wrote, criticizing the agency’s funding and oversight and highlighting that the Senate will soon consider the Department of Homeland Security funding bill. Ryan voted last week against a House-passed Homeland Security funding bill, a measure supported by most Republicans and seven Democrats, including two from Long Island, citing concerns about accountability for ICE and other federal agencies.
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also posted on social media, saying there would be insufficient support among Senate Democrats to advance the DHS funding bill as currently written.
Ryan has been outspoken on immigration enforcement issues dating back to his time as Ulster County Executive. In June 2019, he issued an executive order restricting county employees from collecting or sharing immigration status information with federal authorities, a policy that limited local cooperation with ICE and Customs and Border Patrol. Most recently, he has led opposition to plans for a federal immigration detention facility in Chester.
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