US President Donald Trump has blamed the deaths of two Americans by federal agents in Minneapolis on Democratic leadership in cities and states refusing to comply with his ongoing immigration crackdown.
The Trump administration has faced intensifying pressure over its immigration operation, particularly after federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, on Saturday.
That incident came less than three weeks after an immigration officer fired at Renee Good, also 37, killing her in her car in the same city.
Trump administration officials quickly claimed Mr Pretti had intended to harm the federal agents – as they did after Ms Good’s death – pointing to a pistol they said was discovered on him.
However, video shared widely on social media and verified by US media showed Mr Pretti never drew a weapon, with agents firing at him seconds after he was sprayed in the face with chemical irritant and thrown to the ground.
Barack and Michelle Obama said Alex Pretti’s shooting should be a ‘wake up call’
Mr Trump attributed the deaths to Minnesota’s Democratic elected officials, including Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said: “Democrat run Sanctuary Cities and States are REFUSING to cooperate with ICE.
“Tragically, two American Citizens have lost their lives as a result of this Democrat ensued chaos.”
After top officials described Mr Pretti as an “assassin” who had assaulted the agents, his parents issued a statement Saturday condemning the administration’s “sickening lies” about their son.
With tensions high, protesters gathered yesterday in Minneapolis, denouncing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
One person held a cardboard sign that read: “Be Pretti, be Good.”
The deaths have stirred outrage, including from two of Mr Trump’s Democratic presidential predecessors.
Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton issued pointed calls for the US to stand up and defend their values after the death of Mr Pretti.
Bill Clinton urged Americans to ‘stand up, speak out’
Barack and Michelle Obama said in a statement that Mr Pretti’s shooting should be a “wake up call” that core US values “are increasingly under assault”.
Hours later Bill Clinton delivered an indictment of the current administration, saying peaceful protesters “have been arrested, beaten, teargassed and most searingly, in the cases of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, shot and killed.”
“All of this is unacceptable,” Mr Clinton said in a statement as he urged Americans to “stand up, speak out”.
“If we give our freedoms away after 250 years, we might never get them back,” he said.
US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, speaking to NBC’s Meet the Press, said an investigation was necessary.
While administration officials have defended the officer who shot Mr Pretti, Mr Trump in a brief interview with the Wall Street Journal yesterday declined twice to say whether the officer had acted appropriately.
“We’re looking, we’re reviewing everything and will come out with a determination,” the president told the paper.
The Trump administration excluded local investigators from a probe into Renee Good’s death
Multiple senators from Mr Trump’s Republican Party have called for a thorough probe into the killing and for cooperation with local authorities.
Mr Trump’s administration controversially excluded local investigators from a probe into Ms Good’s death.
Mr Walz posed a question directly to the president during a press briefing yesterday, asking: “What do we need to do to get these federal agents out of our state?”
Business leaders from 60 corporations headquartered in Minnesota – including retailer Target, food giant General Mills and several professional sports franchises – signed an open letter “calling for an immediate de-escalation of tensions” and for authorities to work together.
Thousands of federal immigration agents have been deployed to heavily Democratic Minneapolis for weeks after conservative media reported on alleged fraud by Somali immigrants, which Mr Trump has repeatedly amplified.
The city, known for its bitterly cold winters, has one of the country’s highest concentrations of Somali immigrants.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison pushed back against Mr Trump’s claim, telling reporters “it’s not about fraud because if he sent people who understand forensic accounting, we’d be having a different conversation”.
“But he’s sending armed masked men,” he added.
Since Operation Metro Surge began, many residents have carried whistles to notify others of the presence of immigration agents, while sometimes violent skirmishes have broken out between the officers and protesters.
Recent polling has shown voters increasingly upset with Mr Trump’s domestic immigration operations, as videos of masked agents seizing people off sidewalks, including children, proliferate.
