Democrats and GOP Senators Demand DHS Secretary Noem’s Ouster Over Pretti Shooting

Demands for the ouster of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem intensified this week after newly surfaced video showed Minneapolis ICU nurse Alex Pretti in an earlier scuffle with federal agents, deepening questions about the deadly shooting that killed him 11 days later and the department’s public account of what happened foxnews +1. House Democratic leaders warned they will move to impeach Noem if President Donald Trump does not fire her, while at least two Republican senators have also called for her removal apnews +1.

Pretti, 37, was shot and killed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents on Jan. 24 in Minneapolis during a street encounter that was captured on multiple bystander videos abcnews +1. Federal officials initially said he approached agents with a gun, but verified footage shows Pretti holding a cellphone as agents tackle him and then fire multiple shots, prompting alarm from use‑of‑force experts and civil-rights advocates abcnews +1. Two CBP officers have been placed on administrative leave as state and federal investigations proceed abcnews +1.

New Videos Undercut DHS Narrative

The latest controversy was triggered by video of a separate Jan. 13 confrontation in Minneapolis that shows Pretti kicking out the taillight of a federal SUV, spitting at an agent and being slammed to the pavement by officers less than two miles from where he would later be killed cnn +1. The footage, authenticated by multiple outlets and confirmed by Pretti’s family, shows agents pinning him facedown on the snowy street as they restrain him cnn +2.

Family attorney Steve Schleicher, who helped prosecute the George Floyd case, argued that “nothing that happened a full week before could possibly have justified Alex's killing” on Jan. 24 cbsnews. Independent policing experts said the two encounters raised serious questions about agents’ tactics, including the rapid escalation to pepper spray and gunfire in the fatal incident and whether officers were adequately trained for urban enforcement operations far from the southern border cnn +1.

A Bipartisan Political Crisis for Noem and Trump

Noem, confirmed to lead DHS in January 2025 by a 59–34 Senate vote, had already been under fire over an aggressive immigration surge that has seen federal immigration officers shoot 13 people, four fatally, since September 2025 spectrumlocalnews +1. After Pretti’s killing—the second fatal shooting by federal officers in Minneapolis this month—House Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar issued a joint statement saying Noem “should be fired immediately — or we will commence impeachment proceedings” apnews +1. An impeachment resolution led by Rep. Robin Kelly has 162 cosponsors, accusing her of obstructing Congress and violating the public trust axios.

The backlash has crossed party lines. Republican Sens. Thom Tillis and Lisa Murkowski said Noem “should be out of a job,” citing her response to the shootings and discrepancies between DHS statements and video evidence politico +1. Trump has instead doubled down, saying he thinks Noem is doing “a very good job” and dispatching border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota while quietly pulling Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino from the operation axios +1. On Capitol Hill, Democrats are threatening to strip DHS money out of a six‑bill funding package ahead of a Jan. 31 deadline, raising the risk of a partial shutdown as they seek new limits and oversight on immigration enforcement axios +1.

The Bigger Picture

The Pretti case has become a flashpoint over the Trump administration’s urban immigration crackdown, testing public trust in official accounts and the willingness of Congress—now armed with a mosaic of videos—to impose guardrails on federal agents operating in U.S. cities cnn +1. With multiple hearings scheduled and impeachment now openly discussed, how the White House and DHS handle evidence, cooperate with investigators and respond to the growing bipartisan unease may shape not only Noem’s future, but also the contours of federal enforcement powers heading into the 2026 midterms axios +1.