Noem Faces Bipartisan Rebuke Over Deadly Immigration Operation

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem faced bipartisan criticism Tuesday over federal immigration operations that left two American citizens dead in Minneapolis, as a Republican senator threatened to block Trump administration nominees and Democrats pressed her to acknowledge making mistakes.

The Senate hearing was Noem’s first appearance on Capitol Hill since federal agents fatally shot Renee Good and Alex Pretti during immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis. The January shootings remain under review.

The incidents prompted a pullback in aggressive street-level immigration enforcement operations and sparked a broader Congressional standoff over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which remains stalled.

“The latest Democrat-led shutdown of DHS is reckless,” Noem said. “It’s unnecessary, and it undermines the American national security, and it harms the men and women who work at DHS and their families.”

During the hearing, Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina said he would place holds on presidential nominees and skip committee meetings — a move that could potentially disrupt the work of the committee — if Noem doesn’t respond within two weeks to his oversight requests.

He cited a letter from the department’s inspector general alleging 10 instances in which DHS misled or obstructed investigators. “You’ve demonstrated anything but exceptional leadership,” Tillis said.

Noem denied interfering with any investigations. Asked by Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island whether she halted a civil rights probe into the shootings, she said, “I did not stop any investigations whatsoever.”

Lawmakers also challenged her public characterization of Good and Pretti as committing acts of domestic terrorism. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials testified last month that neither agency told her that Pretti or Good met the criteria for such a designation.

Democratic Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois asked whether she would retract those remarks. “Is it so hard to say you were wrong?” he asked. Noem didn’t withdraw her earlier statements.

The Minnesota operation has shifted in the weeks after the deadly shootings.

Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, who initially oversaw the surge of federal personnel into the state, was replaced by Tom Homan, the administration’s point person on border enforcement. Homan later announced a withdrawal of additional federal assets from Minnesota, describing it as a de-escalation that was agreed on with city and state leaders, while pledging to continue with President Donald Trump’s broader deportation agenda nationwide.

The hearing was interrupted twice by protesters, including a woman who identified herself as a former FEMA employee and another who held photographs of people shot during immigration operations before Capitol Police removed them.