Minneapolis shootings: Obama, Clinton say killings by ICE agents should be a wake-up call for US
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A photo of ICU nurse Alex Pretti is seen at a makeshift memorial at the site in Minneapolis where he was fatally shot by federal immigration agents on Jan 24.
PHOTO: VICTOR BLUE/NYTIMES
MINNEAPOLIS – Former US presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton have issued pointed calls for America to stand up and defend their values after the second killing of a citizen in Minneapolis by immigration agents that President Donald Trump blamed on Democratic “chaos”.
The Trump administration has faced intensifying pressure over its mass immigration crackdown, particularly after federal agents shot and killed Mr Alex Pretti
That incident came less than three weeks after an immigration officer fired on Ms Renee Good
Trump administration officials quickly claimed that Mr Pretti had intended to harm the Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agents
However, video footage shared widely on social media and verified by US media showed Mr Pretti never drawing a weapon, with agents firing at him seconds after he was sprayed in the face with a chemical irritant and thrown to the ground.
Mr Trump provocatively attributed the deaths to Minnesota’s Democratic elected officials, including Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, writing on his Truth Social platform: “Democrat-run sanctuary cities and states are refusing to cooperate with ICE.”
“Tragically, two American citizens have lost their lives as a result of this Democrat ensued chaos,” he added.
After top officials described Mr Pretti as an “assassin” who assaulted the agents, his parents issued a statement on Jan 24 condemning the administration’s “sickening lies” about their son.
With tensions high, protesters gathered on Jan 25 in Minneapolis, denouncing ICE. One person held a cardboard sign that read: “Be Pretti, be Good.”
The double tragedies have stirred outrage, including from two of Mr Trump’s Democratic presidential predecessors.
Mr Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama said on Jan 25 in a statement that Mr Pretti’s shooting should be a “wake-up call” that core US values “are increasingly under assault”.
Hours later, Mr Clinton delivered a fierce indictment of the current administration, saying that peaceful protesters “have been arrested, beaten, tear-gassed, and most searingly, in the cases of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, shot and killed”.
“All of this is unacceptable,” he said in a statement as he urged Americans to “stand up, speak out”.
“If we give our freedoms away after 250 years, we might never get them back.”
Former US president Barack Obama said the killing of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents should be a “wake-up call”.
PHOTO: REUTERS
‘We’re reviewing everything’
US Deputy Attorney-General Todd Blanche, speaking to NBC’s Meet The Press, said an investigation was necessary.
While administration officials have defended the officer who shot Mr Pretti, Mr Trump in a brief interview with the Wall Street Journal on Jan 25 declined twice to say whether the officer had acted appropriately.
“We’re looking, we’re reviewing everything, and will come out with a determination,” the President told the newspaper.
Multiple senators from Mr Trump’s Republican Party have called for a thorough probe into the killing, and for cooperation with the local authorities.
The Trump administration controversially excluded local investigators from a probe into Ms Good’s death.
Governor Walz posed a question directly to the President during a press briefing on Jan 25, asking: “What do we need to do to get these federal agents out of our state?”
Business leaders from 60 corporations headquartered in Minnesota, including retailer Target, food giant General Mills and several professional sports franchises, signed an open letter on Jan 25 “calling for an immediate de-escalation of tensions” and for the authorities to work together.
Voters upset
Thousands of federal immigration agents have been deployed to heavily Democratic Minneapolis for weeks, after conservative media reported on alleged fraud by Somali immigrants, which Mr Trump has repeatedly amplified.
The city, known for its bitterly cold winters, has one of the country’s highest concentrations of Somali immigrants.
Minnesota Attorney-General Keith Ellison pushed back against Mr Trump’s claim, telling reporters “it’s not about fraud, because if he sent people who understand forensic accounting, we’d be having a different conversation. But he’s sending armed masked men”.
Since “Operation Metro Surge” began, many residents have carried whistles to notify others of the presence of immigration agents, while sometimes violent skirmishes have broken out between officers and protesters.
Recent polling has shown that voters are increasingly upset with Mr Trump’s domestic immigration operations, as videos of masked agents seizing people off sidewalks, including children, proliferate. AFP
