By Emmanuel Bobby
In the hours after Border Patrol agents shot and killed Alex Pretti on Saturday, President Donald Trump and his top aides rushed to portray him as a “gunman,” a “domestic terrorist,” and a “would-be assassin.” But behind the scenes, Trump was growing uneasy as he watched repeated news coverage of the incident and fielded calls from worried aides, lawmakers, and allies, according to senior administration officials.
Trump had already posted an image of Pretti’s legally permitted Sig Sauer P320, describing him as a “gunman” whose weapon was “loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go.” Yet as video clips and reporting emerged, Trump became increasingly disturbed by what he was seeing.
“He doesn’t like chaos on his watch,” one senior administration official said.
While Trump showed no sign of abandoning his mass-deportation agenda, he began to recognize that the optics needed to change. By Sunday night, he decided to reset the administration’s public posture while keeping the enforcement strategy intact—one backed by $170 billion in new funding for the Department of Homeland Security under his second-term signature legislation.
The shift came amid two fatal shootings of American citizens by federal immigration officers, declining public support for the administration’s tactics, and growing calls for the removal of senior officials. Still, many allies insisted Trump would not retreat from the core mission of deporting millions of undocumented immigrants ahead of the midterms.
“You can’t stop what you’re doing,” a former White House official said. “This is the whole point of ICE existing in these cities.”
A Botched Initial Response
The shooting occurred early Saturday morning in Minneapolis as Washington prepared for a major snowstorm. Border Patrol commander-at-large Greg Bovino alerted senior officials minutes after Pretti was killed. Within an hour, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem briefed Trump.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz soon demanded that the White House withdraw federal agents from the state, calling them “violent” and “untrained.” Despite the heated rhetoric, Walz and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles opened lines of communication that would later help defuse tensions.
By late morning, DHS began circulating background briefings suggesting Pretti posed a threat, sharing a photo of his handgun and emphasizing the presence of ammunition. Draft public statements circulated for nearly an hour as officials argued over wording. When the final version was released, not all senior White House aides had signed off.
The statement accused Pretti of wanting to “massacre law enforcement” and said agents fired “defensive shots.” At a subsequent news conference, local officials confirmed Pretti had a firearm and a legal permit to carry it.
Administration officials doubled down. Stephen Miller labeled Pretti a “domestic terrorist” and “would-be assassin” in a series of social media posts. Trump echoed the language, and Noem repeated it publicly. Video footage circulating online, however, contradicted key elements of the official narrative, sparking backlash—including from Second Amendment advocates angered by the implication that legal gun possession justified deadly force.
Inside the White House, Trump watched the coverage closely.
“He saw it wasn’t playing well,” said a Republican lawmaker who spoke with him that day.
Pressure Builds
The administration was already under scrutiny following the January killing of Renée Nicole Good, a Minnesota woman shot by a federal agent during a traffic encounter. That case had become a partisan flashpoint, with critics arguing the agent was not in danger when he fired.
By Saturday evening, as Trump hosted a private screening event at the White House, there was still no public indication he was dissatisfied with his team. But by Sunday morning, officials fanned out across television networks, defending the administration’s actions—often fueling fresh criticism.
Behind the scenes, Wiles grew frustrated with DHS messaging and urged Trump to send border czar Tom Homan to Minneapolis. Allies echoed the suggestion, arguing Homan could calm tensions with Democratic leaders.
By Sunday night, Trump signaled he was ready to make changes.
New Faces, Same Policy
On Monday, Trump removed Bovino from his high-profile role and sent him back to a border posting in California. He tapped Homan to take over operations in Minnesota, betting that his more measured style could help de-escalate the situation. Trump also spoke directly with Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, describing the call as productive and striking a noticeably softer tone.
At a White House briefing, press secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to defend earlier characterizations of Pretti, saying she had not heard the president describe him that way.
Trump later confirmed publicly that he did not believe Pretti intended to assassinate anyone, though he reiterated his belief that firearms had no place in such confrontations. He also made clear that Noem would remain in her post, despite calls from Democrats—and later two Republican senators—for her removal.
“We’re going to de-escalate a little bit,” Trump said, underscoring a shift in tone if not in policy.
As unrest continued in Minneapolis, including an unrelated incident involving Rep. Ilhan Omar at a town hall, the White House remained on edge. Trump, asked about the confrontation, blamed Omar without reviewing video of the incident.
The administration’s recalibration in Minnesota reflects Trump’s recognition that while his immigration crackdown remains central to his presidency, the political costs of its most aggressive moments are mounting—and the visuals matter.