By Hafiz Rashid
“ICE agents do not have carte blanche in carrying out their duties,” Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski said Sunday. “Lawfully carrying a firearm does not justify federal agents killing an American—especially, as video footage appears to show, after the victim had been disarmed.“
Senators Murkowski, Thom Tillis, and Bill Cassidy are all calling for independent investigations into the shooting. In a post on X Saturday night, Cassidy said, “The events in Minneapolis are incredibly disturbing.”
“The credibility of ICE and DHS are at stake. There must be a full joint federal and state investigation. We can trust the American people with the truth,” Cassidy posted.
Representative James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, went so far as to suggest that President Trump remove ICE agents from Minneapolis..
“If I were President Trump, I would almost think about, OK, if the mayor and governor are going 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?” Comer said Sunday on Fox News, adding that he expected Minnesotans to “rebel against their leadership.”
On Sunday, Representative Andrew Garabino, chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, called on DHS, ICE, and Border Patrol leaders to testify before his committee, drawing praise from his GOP colleague Representative Michael Baumgartner, who said it was important “the American people and Congress be given a better understanding of how immigration enforcement is being handled.”
Many Republicans are concerned that ICE’s violence, coupled with the rest of the Trump administration’s heavy-handed policies, will hurt them in midterm elections this year. Representative Dusty Johnson, who is running for governor in North Dakota, called for deescalation, in an X post Sunday.
“Politicians, protesters, and law enforcement all have an obligation to deescalate the situation in Minnesota. As with any officer-involved shooting, this demands a thorough investigation,” Johnson posted.
One House Republican told Politico anonymously, “Many of us wonder if the administration has any clue as to how much this will hurt us legislatively and electorally this year.”
It may be a small fraction of Republicans right now, but cracks are beginning to form as Trump’s actions are going too far even for members of his own party. The resistance from Minnesota is working. Will the Trump administration back down, or make things worse?
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