President Donald Trump has said his administration is going to de-escalate a little bit in Minnesota, after the second fatal shooting of a US citizen by federal immigration officers there.
Bottom line, it was terrible. Both of them were terrible, he said in a Fox News interview on Tuesday.
Earlier this month, Renee Good was fatally shot by an immigration officer, followed by Alex Pretti, who was killed on Saturday after being stopped by border agents.
Pretti's death reignited local protests and public outcry across the country, and led to criticism from lawmakers in both parties. Trump's remarks are the latest sign his administration is taking a step back on its operations in Minnesota.
Speaking to other reporters ahead of a rally in Iowa Tuesday night, Trump said he viewed the killing of Pretti, an intensive care nurse at a veterans' hospital, as a very unfortunate incident. Asked by reporters about whether he agreed with characterisations of Pretti as a domestic terrorist, Trump said: I haven't heard that.
Trump then added: He shouldn't have been carrying a gun. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said shortly after the shooting that Pretti wasn't there to peacefully protest, he was there to perpetuate violence, and accused him of domestic terrorism. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has also said the agents fired in self-defence, after Pretti resisted attempts to disarm him.
Noem stated that Pretti was shot because he was brandishing a gun during a confrontation. Eyewitnesses and local officials, however, have challenged that account, saying he had a phone in his hand, not a weapon. There is no sign of a gun in Pretti's hand, according to analysis of the available video by BBC Verify.
Local authorities said the gun had been legally registered and that Pretti had been shot after the firearm was removed. A preliminary report drafted by Customs and Border Protection also appears to contradict the initial DHS account of events. It states that two of its agents fired their weapons at Pretti, not mentioning that he was reaching for his firearm.
On Monday, the DHS pulled the Minnesota mission's leader, Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino, from the state and announced the deployment of Tom Homan, White House's border tsar, to take over.
Pretti's death, coming two weeks after Renee Good's fatal shooting, sparked anger among local residents and renewed calls for the Trump administration to withdraw its 3,000 immigration agents from the region.
In the interview, Trump defended the immigration operations in Minnesota, referencing the removal of thousands of hardened criminals from the state. That's all working out, he said, before mentioning that the administration would de-escalate.
Stephen Miller, a top White House aide, indicated that the White House has instructed DHS to use the extra personnel more strategically to manage arrests and avoid confrontations. Some GOP leaders are calling for an investigation into Pretti's death. Meanwhile, a federal judge has ordered that DHS must preserve evidence related to the event.
In a rally in Iowa centered on economic policies, Trump did not delve deeply into the situation in Minnesota but highlighted his administration's strong stance on immigration, citing a recent poll reflecting public support for deportation efforts targeting illegal immigrants with criminal records.
