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Gun rights groups clash after man DHS says was armed fatally shot by CBP in Minneapolis

Gun rights groups clash after man DHS says was armed fatally shot by CBP in Minneapolis

The fatal Border Patrol shooting of a man who the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says was armed with a 9mm pistol during a confrontation with agents on Saturday has sparked a clash among gun rights groups, pitting defenses of lawful carry and protest rights against warnings about escalating anti-law-enforcement rhetoric. Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident, was shot Saturday morning while allegedly protesting an immigration enforcement operation targeting an illegal immigrant with a criminal record. DHS officials say Pretti approached Border Patrol agents while armed with a handgun and “violently resisted” when they attempted to disarm him, leading to the shooting. State officials said Pretti, who was pronounced dead at the scene, had a lawful Permit to Carry (PTC), and court records obtained by Fox News Digital indicate he did not have a criminal record. ANTI-ICE AGITATOR ALLEGEDLY BITES OFF FEDERAL OFFICER’S FINGER DURING MINNEAPOLIS ATTACK The Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus quickly responded to the shooting, calling it “deeply concerning.” “According to local officials, the man was legally armed, a firearm was recovered at the scene, and he is believed to have been a lawful gun owner and permit to carry holder,” the organization wrote in a statement.  They added many critical facts remain unknown, as the shooting happened just hours earlier. MINNESOTA POLICE CHIEFS ALLEGE SOME ICE AGENTS RACIALLY PROFILED US CITIZENS, INCLUDING OFF-DUTY OFFICERS “We do not yet have an independent account of what initiated the encounter or what triggered the use of deadly force,” the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus wrote. “Despite widespread speculation regarding intent, there has been no evidence produced indicating an intent to harm the officers. We are calling for a full and transparent investigation by both state and federal authorities.  “Every peaceable Minnesotan has the right to keep and bear arms—including while attending protests, acting as observers, or exercising their First Amendment rights. These rights do not disappear when someone is lawfully armed, and they must be respected and protected at all times.” Contrasting Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus’ response, the National Rifle Association (NRA) released a statement on social media blaming Democrat leaders in the blue state for “incit[ing] violence” against law enforcement officers, and pleading with Minnesotans to lower the temperature amid ongoing unrest. NOEM SAYS MINNEAPOLIS SUSPECT COMMITTED ‘DOMESTIC TERRORISM,’ ACCUSES WALZ, FREY OF INCITING VIOLENCE “For months, radical progressive politicians like [Minnesota Gov.] Tim Walz have incited violence against law enforcement officers who are simply trying to do their jobs,” the NRA wrote in an X post. “Unsurprisingly, these calls to dangerously interject oneself into legitimate law-enforcement activities have ended in violence, tragically resulting in injuries and fatalities.” The NRA noted that as with any officer-involved shooting, there will be “a robust and comprehensive investigation that takes place to determine if the use of force was justified.” “As we await these facts and gain a clearer understanding, we urge the political voices to lower the temperature to ensure their constituents and law enforcement officers stay safe,” NRA officials wrote. As the gun rights groups sounded off, so-called “armed community response” members in Minneapolis patrolled near the scene of the shooting Saturday night. At least two people were spotted at the location wearing tactical vests and open-carrying weapons. DHS is leading the investigation into the shooting, with assistance from the FBI.

Rep Maxwell Frost allegedly assaulted at Sundance Film Festival in racially-charged incident

Rep Maxwell Frost allegedly assaulted at Sundance Film Festival in racially-charged incident

A member of Congress was allegedly assaulted Friday evening while attending the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., wrote on X on Saturday: “Last night, I was assaulted by a man at Sundance Festival who told me that Trump was going to deport me before he punched me in the face.” Frost added that the suspect “was heard screaming racist remarks as he drunkenly ran off.” Frost said the man had been arrested and that he wasn’t hurt in the incident. LAWMAKER TARGETED WITH DEATH THREAT AFTER CONDEMNING RACIST SIGN AIMED AT WINSOME SEARS “Thank you to the venue security and Park City PD for assistance on this incident,” he added. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries responded to the news on X: writing, “I am horrified by the attack on Congressman Maxwell Frost. Grateful that he is okay, but appalled that this terrifying assault took place. The perpetrator must be aggressively prosecuted.” MEMBER OF CONGRESS SAYS SHE WAS ASSAULTED BY GANG OF YOUTH BEFORE TRUMP DC TAKEOVER  Jeffries continued: “Hate and political violence has no place in our country, and the entire House Democratic Caucus family stands with Maxwell.” The alleged assault took place at a party hosted by the CAA talent party at the High West Saloon, which the suspect crashed, according to Variety. The suspect was allegedly bragging in the bathroom about being “White” before punching Frost in the face, the outlet reported. He has yet to be identified. Fox News Digital has reached out to the Park City Police Department for comment. The 29-year-old congressman was first elected to serve in Florida’s 10th district in 2022.

Frey, Klobuchar call for ICE to leave Minneapolis following deadly CBP shooting in city

Frey, Klobuchar call for ICE to leave Minneapolis following deadly CBP shooting in city

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey along with several Minnesota senators and representatives, called on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to get out of the state on Saturday, hours after a deadly shooting in the city. “The city of Minneapolis is filing a declaration after today’s shooting to encourage the judge to rule on a temporary restraining order on Monday that would grant us immediate relief and help, would help stop this operation that has been so harmful to the city of Minneapolis, the state of Minnesota has resulted in multiple shootings and tragic deaths,” the mayor said in a news conference. Frey said the “chaos that we are seeing” has been directly caused by ICE and the Trump administration. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who joined Frey at the podium, said: “Our message is really clear and straightforward. We need ice out of Minnesota.” DHS SAYS ICE AGENTS RAMMED BY VEHICLES AMID MINNEAPOLIS ENFORCEMENT SURGE: ‘AGGRESSIVELY ASSAULTED’ Klobuchar asserted that ICE is “not making us more safe as the tragic, tragic killing this morning, as people saw it viscerally on that video, shows us they are making us less safe.” She said the around 3,000 ICE and Border Patrol agents in the area outnumber the “sworn police officers in Minneapolis and St. Paul by three to one, and it’s even larger than the 10 metropolitan police departments.” “This is completely out of whack, completely out of balance,” she claimed. “And now three people have been shot, two resulting in death. One: Renee Good, mother of three, and now Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old Minneapolis man, a citizen, also a nurse.” Pretti was shot and killed by an ICE agent Saturday morning during an immigration enforcement operation. LARA TRUMP SLAMS TIM WALZ, JACOB FREY FOR ‘FANNING FLAMES’ WHILE RED STATES COOPERATE WITH ICE “This city has been under siege,” Klobuchar added, while laying blame on the Trump administration. “I have personally warned them that there would be more deaths, that more of this would happen,” she said. “And clearly they’re not listening. So, we ask people around the country to talk to their Republican representatives to make clear that this is not the America that is ours. This has got to stop.” ANTI-ICE AGITATORS, INCLUDING CLERGY, ARRESTED AT MINNEAPOLIS AIRPORT DURING PROTEST IN FRIGID WEATHER Frey said that he had asked for assistance from the National Guard to help the around 600 officers with the Minneapolis Police Department. “Minneapolis police officers have been working tirelessly to do their day-to-day work, and simultaneously, they are put in the middle of these chaotic situations,” he said. “Most of the protests that we’ve seen have remained peaceful. Let’s keep it that way.” Frey also called out the president, saying, “Let’s not counter Donald Trump’s chaos with our own version of chaos here.” Klobuchar claimed that ICE’s mission in Minnesota had “gone way beyond” investigating fraud or apprehending violent criminals. “I took part in that peaceful and powerful march yesterday, all those peaceful people, and then we wake up this morning to this,” Klobuchar lamented. She added that they had opposed a Congressional Republicans bill tripling the ICE budget last summer, which she said is now more than the FBI, and said that training for agents has been reduced from five months to 47 days. “We are also calling for a full and transparent investigation,” Klobuchar said. “We have done this before in Minnesota, coordinating with local and state and federal law enforcement. And if they’re not going to do it, then they need to get out of the way and allow our very professional Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to conduct the investigation into these killings.” Frey later added in an X post: “After today’s shooting, Minneapolis is filing a declaration to push for an immediate ruling on our temporary restraining order. We need swift action to protect our city.” DHS officials said Pretti approached Border Patrol agents while armed with a 9mm pistol and “violently resisted” when they attempted to disarm him. Medics at the scene immediately delivered aid, but Pretti was pronounced dead at the scene. Fox News’ Alexandra Koch contributed to this report. 

Noem says Minneapolis suspect committed ‘domestic terrorism,’ accuses Walz, Frey of inciting violence

Noem says Minneapolis suspect committed ‘domestic terrorism,’ accuses Walz, Frey of inciting violence

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem on Saturday labeled the alleged actions of the suspect killed in a Border Patrol-involved shooting in Minneapolis as “domestic terrorism,” accusing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey of inciting violence against federal officers while stressing that President Donald Trump is prepared to invoke the Insurrection Act if deemed necessary. “When you perpetuate violence against a government because of ideological reasons and for reasons to resist and perpetuate violence, that is the definition of domestic terrorism,” Noem said during a news conference at FEMA headquarters in Washington, D.C. “This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers committed an act of domestic terrorism,” Noem added. “That’s the facts.” Noem described the incident beginning while DHS officers carried out “targeted operations” in Minneapolis against an illegal alien whose criminal history included domestic assault, disorderly conduct, and driving without a valid license. TODD BLANCHE WARNS AMERICANS ‘SHOULD BE WORRIED’ ABOUT MINNESOTA PROTESTS AFTER CHURCH DISRUPTION “An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9-millimeter semi-automatic handgun,” and agents attempted to disarm him. “The officers attempted to disarm this individual, but the armed suspect reacted violently,” Noem said. “Fearing for his life and for the lives of his fellow officers around him, an agent fired defensive shots.” Medics attempted to render aid, Noem said, but the man, later identified as 37-year-old Alex Pretti, “was pronounced dead at the scene.”  She also claimed that the Pretti had “two magazines with ammunition in them that held dozens of rounds” and no identification. “This looks like a situation where an individual arrived at the scene to inflict maximum damage on individuals and to kill law enforcement,” Noem said. TRUMP CITES ARMED SUSPECT, LACK OF POLICE SUPPORT FOLLOWING FATAL BORDER PATROL SHOOTING IN MINNEAPOLIS The shooting was followed by unrest in the area, Noem said.  “Hundreds of protesters then showed up at the scene,” she said. “They began to obstruct and to assault law enforcement officers,” she added. “We saw objects being thrown at them, including ice and other objects, and a rampant assault began. “A [Homeland Security Investigation] HSI agent’s finger was bitten off.”  She said crowd-control measures were deployed “to bring safety to the public and to law enforcement at the scene.” Noem said the situation “did not have to happen,” placing blame on Minnesota’s political leadership.  “The Minnesota governor and the Minneapolis mayor need to take a long, hard look in the mirror,” she said. “They need to evaluate their rhetoric, their conversations, and their encouragement of such violence against our citizens and our law enforcement officers.” NOEM SAYS ‘ARRESTS COMING’ AFTER ANTI-ICE MOB TARGETED MINNESOTA CHURCH She also accused Walz of undermining federal officers. “I’ll remind you that Governor Walz, today in his press conference, said that our officers were not even law enforcement, which is a lie,” Noem said. “He’s called them the Gestapo.” Noem further claimed Walz “encouraged residents and citizens and violent rioters to resist,” and alleged that state leaders had doxed federal officers, “putting themselves and their families’ lives in jeopardy.” During the briefing, Noem was asked whether Trump was closer to invoking the Insurrection Act in response to the unrest. She did not rule it out. “The president will use every tool that he needs to follow through on his promises to the American people,” Noem said. She added that the Trump administration would continue operating in Minneapolis despite objections from state and local leaders. “We’re going to treat Minneapolis exactly the way that we have treated every other city across this country,” Noem said, referring to immigration enforcement operations like Operation Metro Surge underway nationwide. Noem said DHS is investigating the shooting “just like we do all other officer-involved shootings,” and that additional details would be released as the investigation continues. The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment in response to Noem’s remarks.

Senate Dems revolt against DHS funding bill amid Minneapolis chaos, hiking government shutdown risk

Senate Dems revolt against DHS funding bill amid Minneapolis chaos, hiking government shutdown risk

Senate Democrats are ready to break a fragile truce that would avert a partial government shutdown after a Minneapolis man was fatally shot by a border patrol agent Saturday.  Congressional Democrats were already leery of backing funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) considering the agency’s presence in Minnesota and beyond, but the shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti during an immigration enforcement operation has shattered what little unity they had on the bill.  Now, Senate Democrats, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., plan to vote against the legislation, which is included in a broader funding package along with five other spending bills.  SENATE DEMOCRATS REBEL AGAINST THEIR OWN LEADERSHIP OVER DHS FUNDING PACKAGE, INCREASING SHUTDOWN ODDS Schumer, in a statement Saturday, said Democrats tried to get “commonsense reforms” in the DHS funding bill but charged that “because of Republicans’ refusal to stand up to President Trump, the DHS bill is woefully inadequate to rein in the abuses” of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).  “I will vote no,” Schumer said. “Senate Democrats will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included.” Schumer’s play call serves as a blow to Senate Republicans, who worked with their colleagues across the aisle to find compromises in the DHS bill, in particular. It also comes as the Jan. 30 deadline to fund the government is rapidly approaching. Further complicating matters is the arctic storm ripping across the country, which has already forced the upper chamber to cancel votes on Monday.  A senior Senate aide told Fox News Digital Senate Democrats had been saying for weeks they weren’t interested in shutting down the government again and had praised the bipartisan nature of the government funding process up until Saturday. “These bills were negotiated with Dems — they agreed to what’s in them,” the aide said. HOUSE JAMS SENATE BY ATTACHING REPEAL OF JACK SMITH PROVISION TO $1.2T FUNDING PACKAGE The agency would be fully funded in the current proposal with several restrictions and reporting requirements that, if not met, would act as triggers to turn off certain cash flows.  Ripping the bill from the current six-bill funding package would cause a domino effect of headaches in Congress, given that any changes to the package would have to go through the House. The lower chamber is gone until Feb. 2, making the likelihood of a partial shutdown much higher.  Before the shooting, a handful of Senate Democrats had already made their opposition to the legislation known, including senators Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and Tim Kaine, D-Va. Kaine notably crossed the aisle last year to join a cohort of Senate Democratic caucus members to reopen the government after the longest shutdown in U.S. history. He was not the only member of that group of eight to voice opposition. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., and Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., both came out against the DHS bill’s inclusion in the broader package on Saturday.  “My personal guiding principle has always been ‘agree where you can and fight where you must,’” Rosen said in a statement. “And I believe this is a time when we must fight back.” House lawmakers are on a week-long recess after passing their latest spending package in two chunks Thursday, one standalone vote on DHS funding and another wrapping together funding legislation for the departments of War, Health and Human Services, Labor, Education, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development. SENATE ADVANCES $174B PACKAGE AS MINNESOTA ICE SHOOTING FUELS DHS FUNDING FIGHT A provision was added to the legislation before it passed the House that would combine the bills into one large package for the Senate to consider at once. It was then expected to be paired with other bills the Senate has not yet considered but which passed the House this month. Changing that ahead of the Jan. 30 shutdown deadline would mean House lawmakers must return to Washington early to go through multiple procedural hurdles and another vote on the legislation, something House GOP leaders are ruling out, at least for now. “We passed all 12 bills over to the Senate, and they still have six in their possession that they need to pass to the president,” a House GOP leadership source told Fox News Digital Saturday evening, referring to the lower chamber completing its portion of Congress’ annual appropriations process. “We have no plan to come back next week.” Even if House leaders changed their plans, the impending snowstorm would mean lawmakers may not return until Tuesday at the earliest. That would put final passage sometime Wednesday or Thursday, virtually guaranteeing Congress does not complete consideration of the bills until after the Friday deadline. House GOP leaders would also likely be grappling with attendance issues if they did order a return, with various lawmakers on planned trips and over a dozen busy campaigning for higher office. A partial government shutdown would mean only agencies that Congress has not yet funded would have to reduce or cease functions. In this case, payment to active duty troops, air traffic controllers and border patrol agents could all be affected.