Klobuchar: Immigration operation in Minneapolis is 'making us less safe'
The Minnesota senator called the situation in Minneapolis "out of control."
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said Sunday that federal immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis are making the city less safe.
After Saturday's shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis, Klobuchar called the situation "out of control."
"My message is simple: [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] is making us not more safe, they're making us less safe, and they need to get out of our state," Klobuchar told ABC News' "This Week" co-anchor Jonathan Karl.
Pretti was killed after federal agents pinned him on the ground before firing several shots. Trump administration officials said Pretti was "brandishing" a gun and multiple magazines with the intent to inflict harm on officers. Multiple administration officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, labeled Pretti a "domestic terrorist" without citing any evidence.
They also blamed Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for the tension in the city.
State and local officials said Pretti was lawfully carrying a gun under Minnesota's open-carry law. Video reviewed and verified by ABC News does not appear to show that Pretti drew his gun on the agents and was holding a phone -- not a gun -- during the incident.
"All he was doing was helping someone, a woman, who'd been pushed over into the snow, into the ice. And then there was this scuffle, and six agents shot at him multiple times," Klobuchar said.
The Minnesota senator said after Pretti's shooting and that of Renee Good by federal agents in Minneapolis on Jan. 7, residents are "afraid." Klobuchar also called the shooting "an assault on the Constitution."
"[It is an] assault on the First Amendment with going after people the way they have and the right to assemble, [it is an] assault on the Second Amendment, you've had someone actually criticizing Alex for being a lawful gun permit owner, and that's what he was, he had a permit and he owned a gun," Klobuchar said.
Gun rights groups have criticized the rhetoric of those on the right supporting the agents, including the National Rifle Association, which typically supports Republicans.
After an assistant U.S. attorney in California posted that there was a "high likelihood" that officers would be legally justified in shooting those who approach them with a gun, the NRA called his rhetoric "dangerous and wrong."
"Responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens," the NRA wrote.
Klobuchar criticized her Republican colleagues for not speaking out against the shooting, noting that some had expressed their thoughts to her privately, but not publicly. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., posted a statement to X characterizing events in Minneapolis as "disturbing," and called for a full investigation.
Klobuchar commended Cassidy, but called for more Republicans to speak out and to vote to limit future funding for ICE as the Senate is prepared to vote on a bill which decides whether to fund the Department of Homeland Security.
"[Republicans] need to speak out because that is one way to get to this Trump administration, but they're not doing that right now and it just shocks me because we have a bill in front of us," Klobuchar said. "I really do appreciate that Senator Cassidy was brave enough to stand up and say something about it when no one else will."
Several Republicans have spoken out about Pretti's shooting and called for investigations, including Sen. Thom Tillis, Reps. Thomas Massie and Michael Baumgartner, and former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. Chairman Rep. Andrew Garbarino said he has formally asked federal officials for testimony in a House Homeland Security Committee hearing.
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