(Jan 26): A growing number of Republicans called for a full investigation after federal agents shot and killed a protester in Minneapolis, a sign of unease within the party about the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration tactics.
The demands from Republican lawmakers, governors and other prominent voices from within Donald Trump’s MAGA base highlight the political risks the GOP faces from the crackdown as the US heads towards midterm elections in November.
Looming in the background is a new threat by Democrats to shut down the government after agents shot and killed intensive care nurse Alex Pretti while he was subdued and on his knees after they discovered he was carrying a gun.
“There must be a full joint federal and state investigation,” Senator Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, posted on X. “We can trust the American people with the truth.”
Other Republicans who have previously broken with Trump on other matters — including retiring Senator Thom Tillis and Representative Thomas Massie — were even more critical. Representative Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, called in a post on X for an investigation “both to get to the bottom of these incidents and to maintain Americans’ confidence in our justice system”.
See also: Rubio says US ready to use force to ensure Venezuela’s cooperation
Federal law enforcement agents deploy tear gas into a crowd in Minneapolis on Jan 23.
“There must be a thorough and impartial investigation into yesterday’s [Saturday] Minneapolis shooting,” said Tillis, who has announced he’s not running again.
While many Republicans continued to voice emphatic support for Trump and the tactics of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, others showed less willingness to accept the administration’s portrayal of Pretti as a “domestic terrorist” who was impeding agents.
See also: BOE’s Bailey warns of spillovers from Trump attack on Fed
Videos showed the agents using pepper spray, shoving, punching and kicking protesters who have stayed largely peaceful and are recording the agents’ actions. Pretti’s killing came after an ICE agent killed another American, Renee Good, on Jan 7.
Trump must now weigh whether to ramp up the actions or scale back the immigration crackdown. A poll from the New York Times and Siena University last week showed that a majority of voters do not approve of Trump’s handling of key issues, with more than 60% saying they disapprove of how ICE is doing its job.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Trump said the administration was “reviewing everything and will come out with a determination”.
The fact that Pretti was carrying a gun complicated matters given that Trump and many Republicans frequently tout Americans’ Second Amendment right to bear arms.
“I don’t like any shooting,” Trump said. “But I don’t like it when somebody goes into a protest and he’s got a very powerful, fully loaded gun.”
US Department of Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem during a news conference at the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington, DC on Jan 24.
To stay ahead of Singapore and the region’s corporate and economic trends, click here for Latest Section
Even as the protests continue in Minneapolis, attention will shift to Washington where Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer vowed late on Saturday to block a massive spending package next week unless Republicans strip funding for the Department of Homeland Security.
That raises the possibility of another partial US government shutdown. The spending legislation needs votes from at least seven Democrats to pass the Senate, and several moderates in the party quickly announced Saturday they’d oppose the bill.
Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen of Nevada, each of whom voted to end the last shutdown, said they would oppose funding for Homeland Security without changes. Rosen insisted she will oppose funding “until we have guardrails in place to curtail these abuses of power and ensure more accountability and transparency”.
None of the Republicans speaking on Sunday mentioned the looming shutdown fight and even those breaking with Trump over the Minneapolis shooting were unlikely to do so on the issue.
But remarks from some suggested that Republicans were at least seeking to defuse tensions inflamed by the protests in Minneapolis and elsewhere in the US. They included Representative James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky who is among Trump’s most vocal supporters.
In an interview with Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures, he suggested that Trump send ICE agents to other US cities.
“If the mayor and the governor are going to put our ICE officials in harm’s way, and there’s a chance of losing more innocent lives or whatever, then maybe go to another city and let the people of Minneapolis decide, ‘Do we want to continue to have all of these illegals?’” he said.
Uploaded by Felyx Teoh
