By Ginika Igboke
President Donald Trump on Tuesday dismissed calls for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign, pushing back against criticism of federal immigration officials following a protester-involved shooting in Minneapolis over the weekend.
Some Democratic lawmakers have demanded Noem’s removal after a federal agent shot and killed Alex Pretti during an altercation in Minneapolis on Saturday. While Noem described Pretti as engaging in domestic terrorism, a senior Justice Department official later said the incident did not meet the legal threshold for terrorism.
Trump addressed Noem’s status while speaking with reporters outside the White House, saying she is doing a “very good job” and a “great job” leading the Department of Homeland Security, particularly citing her efforts to secure the U.S.–Mexico border.
When asked directly whether Noem would step down, Trump replied, “No.”
Turning to border policy, Trump said critics overlook what he described as failures of the previous administration, which he said allowed “millions of people” to enter the country. Under his administration, he said, border authorities are allowing entry only through legal channels.
Trump accused the Biden administration and Democrats of permitting “tens of millions of people” to enter the United States, including criminals and individuals released from mental institutions.
On Monday, Trump said his private conversations with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey were productive, comments echoed by both Democratic leaders. Walz’s office said Trump agreed to have the Department of Homeland Security ensure state authorities can conduct their own investigation into the Pretti shooting. Frey said he understood that some federal agents would begin leaving the city on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Democrats would oppose funding legislation that includes money for DHS, which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as Congress faces a Jan. 30 deadline to fund the government and avoid a partial shutdown.
In a Sunday statement, Schumer urged Republicans to “join Democrats in overhauling” both ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, adding that Senate Democrats would block the current DHS funding bill.
House Democrats have also called for Noem’s removal, with several lawmakers issuing a joint statement Monday demanding that immigration agents in Minneapolis be stood down. They cited the Pretti shooting, the earlier death of Renee Good, and what they described as a pattern of civil-rights abuses and excessive enforcement by ICE and CBP in Minnesota.
The Trump administration has pledged to carry out mass deportations of illegal immigrants, saying many of those arrested and removed from the country have extensive criminal histories, including convictions for child abuse, sexual assault, and other serious crimes.
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