Minneapolis Shooting Sparks Backlash, Calls to Abolish ICE
Minneapolis, MN – The fatal shooting of Alex Jeffrey Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis on Saturday ignited a surge of bipartisan backlash against the Trump administration's immigration policies and fueled growing support for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The shooting, the second fatal incident involving federal agents in the city in just over two weeks, prompted President Donald Trump to order a shake-up of ICE operations in Minneapolis, according to Time.
The controversy unfolded as support for abolishing ICE spiked, even among Republicans. A YouGov poll conducted on Saturday revealed that 19 percent of Republicans and 48 percent of American adults now support abolishing the agency, a significant increase from June when only 9 percent of Republicans and 27 percent of Americans overall held that view, Time reported.
In response to the escalating situation, Trump announced that Tom Homan, his border czar, would be dispatched to Minneapolis to oversee ICE operations, according to Time. Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino, who has been at the center of the surge in immigration arrests, was expected to leave the city on Tuesday, along with a contingent of federal agents, the Associated Press reported. Homan is considered a proponent of targeted enforcement, while Bovino has become associated with more indiscriminate raids, according to Time.
The death of Pretti has also galvanized Democrats in Congress, and even some Republicans, to take action to rein in ICE, Vox reported. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer released a statement after Pretti's death, asserting that Senate Democrats would force changes to Trump's immigration policies, even if it meant risking a government shutdown, according to Vox.
The circumstances surrounding Pretti's death remained a point of contention. The Trump administration defended the shooting by highlighting the fact that Pretti had a gun, Vox reported.
Adding to the political tensions, Minnesota's secretary of state alleged that the Trump administration was attempting to leverage the situation, with Gov. Tim Walz, to gain access to voter data, Vox reported.
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