New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has called on Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign following the killing of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday, arguing that she has “forfeited her right to lead.”
Pretti, 37, was shot dead in the street by federal agents, becoming the second U.S. citizen to die at the hands of immigration officials in the Minnesota city this month, following the earlier killing of Renee Good.
“Kristi Noem has forfeited her right to lead,” Gov. Hochul said at a press conference Sunday. “I’m calling on her to resign as Secretary of Homeland Security or Donald Trump to do the right thing and just fire her. And, if not, she must be removed or impeached.
“And [Customs and Border Patrol commander] Gregory Bovino, who has helped lead and defend and escalate these operations, should also be fired. It’s a shame I have to say this in America but no one is above the law. No one.”
The Trump administration reacted to Pretti’s killing by claiming he was armed and intent on harming the officers who beat and shot him, posting a photograph of the gun on the Department of Homeland Security’s social media account.
However, video filmed at the scene by bystanders shows the victim holding his phone in one hand and nothing in the other, challenging the government’s narrative about his intentions.
“I don’t know of any peaceful protester that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign,” Noem insisted Saturday.
“This is a violent riot when you have someone showing up with weapons and are using them to assault law enforcement officers.”
The Second Amendment guarantees the right to keep and bear arms, and Minnesota is an open-carry state. It is not a crime to possess a weapon at a protest.
The killing of Pretti, a nurse otherwise warmly remembered by his family and friends, has further turned up the heat on DHS, with Minnesota officials Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey again condemning its actions.
Like Hochul, California Gov. Gavin Newsom has also called for Noem’s resignation and Bovino’s dismissal, while the Democratic Party demanded the secretary’s impeachment via its official account.
While the administration will have anticipated outrage from its liberal opponents, which it can be relied on to reject as partisan rhetoric, Noem has also begun to face criticism from the right – a development likely to be of far greater concern.
Erick Erickson, a “conservative truth-teller,” alleged on X (Twitter) Sunday that ICE’s recent aggressions are the result of Noem “marginalizing” Trump’s border czar Tom Homan because of his preference for prioritizing the round-up of criminals, not simply undocumented immigrants, claiming that Noem and Bovino are actively seeking “the public confrontations and displays.”
In case his followers were sceptical about the framing, Erickson provided links to articles saying as much from right-leaning media outlets like Fox News, The New York Post and The Washington Examiner.
Libertarian journalist Robby Soave meanwhile argued that while the video evidence in the Pretti and Good cases may leave room for doubt, “it’s abundantly, absolutely clear that the Trump administration is lying about what happened.”
“Notice I said ‘lying’ and not ‘wrong,’” he continued. “There’s no way around this. Kristi Noem and Stephen Miller have claimed [Pretti’s] a domestic terrorist who had every intention of harming cops.
“They have not presented a shred of evidence for this, except that he possessed a gun. Having a gun is a cherished Second Amendment right!
“The admin seems to think that they have to defend every single action taken by law enforcement, no matter how wrong or suspect, no matter how many constitutional rights require sacrificing. Deeply wrong, and frankly shameful.”
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