Today in Politics, Bulletin 294. 1/26/26

… The theme of the day was Trump trying to do damage control after federal agents murdered VA nurse Alex Pretti while Stephen Miller, Kristi Noem, Greg Bovino and others continued to make it worse for him politically by making false claims about the victim and lying about what was clearly depicted on the videos.

… Fox immigration reporter Bill Melugin: “I’ve talked to more than half a dozen sources, including several in senior positions, who all tell me they have grown increasingly uneasy and frustrated with some of the claims and narratives DHS pushed in the aftermath of the shooting. Specifically, I’m told there is extreme frustration with DHS officials going on TV and putting out statements claiming that Alex Pretti was intending to conduct a ‘massacre’ of fed agents or wanted to carry out ‘maximum damage’, even after numerous videos appeared to show those claims were inaccurate.

… “These sources say this messaging from DHS officials has been catastrophic from a PR and morale perspective, as it is eroding trust and credibility. Some of these sources have described DHS’ response to the shooting as ‘a case study on how not to do crisis PR’, one said they are so ‘fed up’ that they wish they could retire, another said ‘DHS is making the situation worse’, and another added that ‘DHS is wrong’ and ‘we are losing this war, we are losing the base and the narrative.’”

… “These sources all believe this is going to end up being what they call a ‘bad shoot’, a ‘shitty’ situation that happened in seconds where agents likely heard ‘gun!’, then the disarmed firearm may have had an accidental discharge that spooked the agents, and they shot. All of the sources support the mass deportation agenda, but have serious hesitations about the way it is being carried out and the messaging that comes with it.”

… After that report from Fox, Trump posted this: “I am sending Tom Homan to MN. He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me. Separately, a major investigation is going on with respect to the massive 20 Billion Dollar, Plus, Welfare Fraud that has taken place in Minnesota, and is at least partially responsible for the violent organized protests going on in the streets.”

… Kristi Noem responded to Trump’s post: “This is good news for peace, safety, and accountability in Minneapolis. I have worked closely with Tom over the last year and he has been a major asset to our team— his experience and insight will help us to remove even more public safety threats and violent criminal illegal aliens off the of streets of Minneapolis. We continue to call on the leadership in MN to allow for state and local partnership in our public safety mission. Thank you Mr. President.”

… This is the part where Noem has to pretend she is happy about this because she likely got a tirade of expletives from Trump for bungling the entire situation for the second time after a serious shooting incident. It is highly likely many Republicans in Congress are lobbying for her to be fired, and it has been reported many times that Noem and Homan despise each other.

… Right-wing talk show host Erick Erickson: “I had a late night phone call with a senior WH official who tells me the President is not happy with how DHS has handled the response to this incident.”

… Semafor: “Trump is sending Homan to MN to act as a mediator of sorts, I’m told by a senior WH official. He’ll be taking meetings with state and local officials in the hopes of finding ‘a way to cooperate so that we can pull back,’ per the official. ‘The president is willing to pull CBP back and go back to normal ICE operations in Minneapolis’ if officials there ‘all cooperate and work together’ with the admin.”

… Multiple media outlets reported tonight that Greg Bovino and some of the Border Patrol agents will be pulled out of Minnesota entirely tomorrow and ICE will take over primary responsibility under Homan.

… Noem has been summoned by Sen. Chuck Grassley to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 3.

… Sen. Rand Paul summoned the heads of ICE, Border Patrol and USCIS to testify before his Senate Homeland Security Committee.

… I guess when Republicans are on the 20% side of an 80-20 issue they become less afraid of Trump.

… Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX) on MS NOW: “It’s very clear that we need to impeach Kristi Noem. We all know the things that she has done. That should be enough to impeach her but what we haven’t talked enough about is what she’s not doing. She is not helping us with disaster preparedness. She delayed search and rescue by 72 hours for the Texas floods. She has been mass firing people at FEMA that should be helping us with things like this winter storm.”

… Trump later posted: “Gov. Tim Walz called me with the request to work together with respect to MN. It was a very good call, and we, actually, seemed to be on a similar wavelength. I told Gov Walz that I would have Tom Homan call him, and that what we are looking for are any and all Criminals that they have in their possession. The Governor, very respectfully, understood that, and I will be speaking to him in the near future. He was happy that Homan was going to MN, and so am I! Crime is way down, but both Gov. Walz and I want to make it better!”

… Walz issued a statement that was slightly different: “Gov. Walz had a productive call with President Trump earlier today. The Governor made the case that we need impartial investigations of the Minneapolis shootings involving federal agents, and that we need to reduce the number of federal agents in MN. The President agreed that he would talk to DHS about ensuring the MN Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is able to conduct an independent investigation, as would ordinarily be the case. The President also agreed to look into reducing the number of federal agents in MN and working with the state in a more coordinated fashion on immigration enforcement regarding violent criminals.”

… Trump agreed to “look into” it. OK.

… “The Governor reminded President Trump that the MN Dept of Corrections already honors federal detainers by notifying ICE when a person committed to its custody isn’t a US citizen. There is not a single documented case of the department’s releasing someone from state prison without offering to ensure a smooth transfer of custody.”

… WSJ EDITORIAL: “Stephen Miller’s mass deportation methods are turning immigration, an issue Trump owned in 2024, into a political liability for Republicans in 2026. Americans don’t want law enforcement shooting people in the street or arresting 5-year-old boys. The Trump Admin spin on this simply isn’t believable.”

… “Stephen Miller, the political architect of the mass deportation policy, called Pretti a ‘domestic terrorist.’ He was a nurse without a criminal record. To hear the ardent gun-rights advocates of the Trump Admin claim he had malicious intentions because he carried a concealed weapon is bizarre. It’s worth noting the comments over the weekend by police around the country who say that this isn’t how they conduct law enforcement. This is backfiring against Republicans.”

… Politico: “However gentle and equivocal the pushback might be, it is growing increasingly conspicuous as congressional Republicans privately discuss how to respond to Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement campaign ahead of the midterm elections. Some Republicans have been privately warning admin officials and GOP leaders for months that the operation is not going over well in some pockets of the country.”

… One House Republican: “Many of us wonder if the administration has any clue as to how much this will hurt us legislatively and electorally this year.”

… “The shooting and backlash from Democrats has upended a crucial government funding package that the Senate was expected to pass this week. Sen. Chuck Schumer said that Democrats won’t vote to advance the legislation so long as DHS funding is included, raising the likelihood of a partial shutdown at midnight Friday. He called on Republicans Sunday to pass the parts of the package funding other agencies while working with Democrats on ‘overhauling ICE and CBP to protect the public.’”

… Sen. John Curtis (R-UT): “We must have a transparent, independent investigation into the MN shooting, and those responsible—no matter their title—must be held accountable. Officials who rush to judgment before all the facts are known undermine public trust and the law-enforcement mission. I disagree with Secretary Noem’s premature DHS response, which came before all the facts were known and weakened confidence. I will be working with a bipartisan group of senators to demand real oversight and transparency, including supporting calls from Rand Paul for leaders of these operations to testify, so trust can be restored and justice served.”

… Dep. AG Todd Blanche was on Fox this morning with a changed tone after his combative interviews on the Sunday shows: Q - “Do the actions of Alex Pretti amount to domestic terrorism? Blanche: Look, it’s an investigation, so I’m not going to prejudge. Host: It doesn’t appear to most of the country to have met that definition. Blanche: I don’t think anybody thinks they were comparing what happened Sat to the legal definition of domestic terrorism. I’m not describing it as anything except for a tragedy.”

… JD Vance said it was, Miller said it was, Noem said it was, Bovino said it was. They used those exact words, except Miller and Vance also called Pretti an “assassin.”

… But Karoline Leavitt came out in her afternoon press conference and blamed Democrats for the murders: “Democrat leaders in MN with sanctuary city policies have defied federal immigration law and the will of the people. And as a result of that defiance two Minnesotans have now tragically lost their lives.”

… Q - “The President described the call with Walz as respectful. But you had strong criticism for the Governor. Could you explain the difference in tone? Leavitt: The criticisms I laid out are what led to the moment we are today.”

… Trump’s pollster told him what to post this morning to get the media to all report that he is looking to “turn the temperature down.” Then the Trump admin went right back to being who they are. Someday the media will stop taking this bait. It’s only been 9 years of this shit.

… Q - “DHS posted it looks like they wanted to do maximum damage. Stephen Miller called him an assassin. Why did the admin jump to conclusions before the investigation? Leavitt: This has been a fluid and fast-moving situation.”

… Q - “Is it the WH’s position that Americans have the right to show up to these ICE operations to film, document, and protest? Leavitt: All Americans have a first amendment constitutional right. Americans do not have a constitutional right to impede and obstruct lawful immigration enforcement operations.”

… Q - “Will Stephen Miller be apologizing to the family of Alex Pretti for calling him an assassin? Leavitt: This incident remains under investigation.”

… Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on CNBC: “If you come to a protest with a 9mm firearm, that’s fine believing in the Second Amendment, but you stand on the sidewalk and you hold your sign. You take that 9mm and you start to engage with ICE officers, and then you resist arrest - listen, I don’t want anyone to die, but ... “

… First, there shouldn’t have been any arrest to resist because Pretti did nothing wrong that would establish probable cause for an arrest. Second, he didn’t resist arrest - 7 border patrol agents were beating on him while he was trying to defend himself before they shot him.

… Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) on Fox: “The anti-ICE protesters are paid, people in Minnesota are really happy ICE is there. The protesters are liberal media, Nazis, anarchists, communists, people who hate the flag, God, veterans, capitalism and democracy! Woke-a-topia!”

… Fox host and former GOP Rep. Trey Gowdy on Fox: “You remember Kyle Rittenhouse and how he was made a hero on the right. I am sure there are people on the conservative side who are saying, ‘You mean you can’t take a firearm to a protest? Because you were just celebrating the guy for doing it a couple of years ago.’ Alex Pretti’s firearm was lawfully being carried. He didn’t point it at the cops.”

… Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino said they will refuse to release the names of the agents involved in the shooting: “There’s this thing called doxxing, and the safety of our employees is very important to us.”

… Naming someone is not doxxing. Doxxing is when you publish someone’s home address, place of work, etc. This is supposed to be a free Republic where we don’t have secret police. Lawsuits must be filed and the Dem ranking members of congressional committees need to issue subpoenas until we have the names.

… Politico: “Trump’s threat of ‘retribution’ and AG Pam Bondi’s explicit policy demands may be undercutting the federal gov’s legal arguments defending its immigration crackdown in MN. A judge hearing a lawsuit seeking to halt the ongoing surge of thousands of federal immigration agents repeatedly cited Trump’s and Bondi’s statements as evidence that the massive ‘Operation Metro Surge’ isn’t aimed solely at enforcing immigration laws. Rather, their comments appear to suggest it is intended to strongarm MN officials into complying with admin policy demands.”

… US District Judge Kate Menendez: “Is the executive trying to achieve a goal through force that it can’t achieve through the courts?”

… “Menendez declined to rule on the matter immediately and seemed to agonize over how to draw a line between legitimate federal law enforcement and an unconstitutional incursion on MN’s sovereignty. The judge repeatedly focused on Trump’s vow on social media earlier this month to bring ‘a day of reckoning and retribution’ to MN, and on a Sat letter from Bondi to Walz that appeared to set conditions for the admin to wind down the surge. Lawyers for the state described Bondi’s missive as a ‘shakedown’ and a ‘ransom note.’”

… “Lawyers for MN argued that the surge is violating the 10th Amendment, which protects states from encroachment by the federal govt. The provision has been held both to prevent the federal govt from ‘commandeering’ local officials and from using coercion to force a state to comply with federal demands.”

… HuffPost WH correspondent S.V. Date: “I have said it before, the US political reporters have no idea how to cover what’s going on. Right now they’re treating this as bad PR for Trump and govt shutdown odds. The only reporters covering Trump right now should be those who have covered Putin, Orban, Erdogan, etc. Outlets should recall their correspondents from Moscow, Budapest, Ankara, Havana, Caracas, Beijing. We need people who know how to write about dangerous autocrats who don’t worry about whether Susie Wiles will return their texts if they accurately describe what happened.”

… VA Secretary Doug Collins finally issued a statement after one of his nurses was killed: “We can confirm Alex Pretti was a nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center. As President Trump has said, nobody wants to see chaos and death in American cities, and we send our condolences to the Pretti family. Such tragedies are unfortunately happening in MN because of state and local officials’ refusal to cooperate with the federal govt to enforce the law and deport dangerous illegal criminals.”

… What a piece of human filth. I now remind you that I included Collins in my Worst 25 Villains of the Trump Admin article.

… Minnesota Star Tribune: “Republican Chris Madel made a stunning exit from the MN governor’s race, saying he cannot support the national GOP’s ‘stated retribution on the citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so.’ In a surprise video announcement, the Minneapolis attorney said he supported the originally stated goals of ICE’s operation in MN, including the deportation of undocumented immigrants with serious criminal records, but the effort has ‘expanded far beyond its stated focus on true public safety threats.’”

… Madel: “US citizens, particularly those of color, live in fear. US citizens are carrying papers to prove their citizenship. That’s wrong. National Republicans have made it nearly impossible for a Republican to win a statewide election in Minnesota.”

… “Madel, who launched his campaign on Dec. 1, quickly rose from a relative political unknown to a top contender for the GOP nomination. He won over many GOP activists with the communication skills he developed as a trial attorney and his status as a political outsider. He was consistently finishing in the top three in straw polls of GOP activists, in a crowded field of about a dozen candidates for governor.”

… LA Times: “The US Attorney’s Office in LA has lost every case it brought to trial against a protester who allegedly attacked a federal LEO last year. A number of other cases were dismissed or rejected by grand juries. Historically, fed prosecutors do not lose at this rate.”

… Stephen Miller responded: “Mass judge and jury nullification, deep in blue territory, of slam-dunk assault cases against federal law enforcement.”

… Sen. John Fetterman finally issued his first statement this afternoon since Pretti was murdered. He said that he wants Thune to take DHS funding out of the mini-bus being voted on this week to fund the govt. However, if Thune refuses to take it out (which he does), then Fetterman will vote for the package because he doesn’t want to shut down the govt. He said he respects ICE and does not want to defund it. He closed by stating that he is “committed to being a voice of reason and common sense.”

… Semafor: “The Democratic rebellion against a bill funding DHS is setting up a challenging week that’s on course to end in a partial govt shutdown absent a surprise deal. Senate Democrats are already vowing to tank a 6-bill funding package if it includes a DHS bill with billions for ICE, following a second fatal shooting in MN. The shutdown deadline is Friday evening, and the House would have to return if the bill is changed.”

… “A Senate Democratic leadership aide told Semafor that Democrats are in contact with the White House but ‘realistic solutions’ aren’t yet on the table. Senate Republicans plan to move forward with the funding bills, including DHS, ‘and hope Democrats can find a path forward to join us,’ a GOP aide said. The solution, they believe, is for Democrats to support the bipartisan package they just negotiated.”

… That isn’t happening. We are heading for another shutdown on Saturday. With Fetterman probably the only Dem vote for the package.

… Schumer: “Senate Dems have made clear we are ready to quickly advance the 5 appropriations bills separately from the DHS funding bill before the Jan 30th deadline. The responsibility to prevent a partial govt shutdown is on Leader Thune and Senate Republicans. If Leader Thune puts those 5 bills on the floor this week, we can pass them right away. If not, Republicans will again be responsible for another govt shutdown.”

… Rep. Greg Casar: “We need to ask Senators for at least 5 non-negotiables. 1. Pull ICE and CPB out of Minneapolis. No more of this in Minneapolis or other American cities. 2. The masks need to come off. 3. No more arresting and deporting US citizens. 4. A full and thorough investigation of the killing of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. 5. We’ve got to end these indiscriminate arrest quotas and warrantless arrests and searches.”

… Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY), one of the 7 Dems who voted for new DHS money, says he now regrets it: “I failed to view the DHS funding vote as a referendum on the illegal and immoral conduct of ICE in Minneapolis. I hear the anger from many of my constituents. I have long been critical of ICE’s unlawful behavior and I must do a better job demonstrating that.”

It certainly looks as though we are heading to another govt shutdown this weekend. In addition to the previous argument that Republicans have still not renewed ACA subsidies, now Dems can say there should not be one more additional dollar added to the DHS budget. Even the 7 Dems who voted for that in the House are backpeddling after Pretti’s murder.

We go into this with the moral high ground and a solid majority of the country with us on both issues. Let’s hope our leaders in Congress will stick to their guns and not give in unless those two things are addressed. ACA funded, no new money for DHS. That should be the absolute minimum, although I would ask for even more.

If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, which was exclusively about the Pretti murder, you can find it here. Thank you to everyone who supports my work by subscribing.

… Axios: “Sen. Ted Cruz, eyeing a 2028 WH run, torched VP Vance and ridiculed Trump's tariff policy during private meetings with donors, according to recordings obtained by Axios. He tells them that after Trump introduced the tariffs, Cruz and a few other senators had a call with Trump in which they urged him to stand down. Cruz says the lengthy call, which stretched past midnight, ‘did not go well,’ and that Trump was ‘yelling’ and ‘cursing.’”

… Cruz: “Trump was in a bad mood. I’ve been in conversations where he was very happy. This was not one of them. I said, Mr. President, if we get to November and people’s 401(k)s are down 30% and prices are up 10–20% at the supermarket, we’re going to go into Election Day, face a bloodbath. You’re going to lose the House, you’re going to lose the Senate, you’re going to spend the next two years being impeached every single week.”

… Trump’s response, according to Cruz: “Fuck you, Ted.”

… Cruz warned the big GOP donors about Vance, arguing that his extreme foreign policy views come directly from his mentor Tucker Carlson: “Tucker created JD. JD is