GOP Sen. Cassidy calls for probe after Border Patrol agent kills Minneapolis man
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Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., called for a thorough investigation after a federal agent fatally shot an allegedly armed man in Minneapolis on Saturday, calling the incident “incredibly disturbing.”
Cassidy joined the chorus of Democratic lawmakers asking questions following the shooting death Saturday of Alex J. Pretti, a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident who was killed by a Border Patrol agent. Pretti allegedly confronted officers and was carrying a gun during a Department of Homeland Security operation in South Minneapolis, according to the agency.
“The events in Minneapolis are incredibly disturbing,” Cassidy said in a post on X. “The credibility of ICE and DHS is at stake. There must be a full-fledged federal and state investigation.”
“We can trust the American people with the truth,” Cassidy added.
WHILE THE MAYOR OF MINNEAPOLIS DEMANDED AN END OF OPERATION CORRECTION, TRUMP INFORMED ABOUT SHOTS RELATED TO THE BORDER CIRCUIT.
Sen. Bill Cassidy called for a full federal and state investigation after a Border Patrol agent fatally shot a gunman during a DHS operation in Minneapolis. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The Louisiana Republican’s comments were apparently at odds with members of his party, including President Donald Trump, who said in a post on Truth Social after the shooting that federal agents “had to protect themselves” because of the lack of support from local police in Minneapolis.
“This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with an additional two magazines!) and ready to go – What does all this mean? Where is the Local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect the IYM Officers?” Trump wrote in the post. “Did the Mayor and Governor cancel them? Many of these officers are not allowed to do their jobs, ICE is forced to protect them – Not an easy thing!”
Last week, Trump pledged to support U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow if she enters the GOP primary in Louisiana to challenge Cassidy, who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2015. Letlow launched his Senate bid days later.
NOEM SAYS MINNEAPOLIS SUSPECT COMMITTED ‘DOMESTIC TERRORISM’, ACCUSES WALZ AND FREY OF DISCOVERING VIOLENCE
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary Kristi Noem during a press conference at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters in Washington, DC, on Saturday, January 24, 2026. (Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Cassidy was one of the Senate Republicans who voted to convict Trump after the House impeached him in 2021. The vote in the Senate ultimately fell short of the threshold needed to convict Trump.
The incident occurred while DHS officers were conducting “targeted operations” in Minneapolis against an illegal immigrant with a violent criminal history, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said at a news conference Saturday.
“An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9-millimeter semi-automatic handgun,” Noem said, adding that agents attempted to disarm him.
“Officers attempted to disarm this individual, but the armed suspect reacted violently,” Noem said. “An agent, fearing for his own life and the lives of his fellow officers around him, opened fire in defense.”
BLOCKED COOPERATION ON ICE CAUSED UNREST IN MINNESOTA, OFFICIALS WARNED VIRGINIA TO REVERSE DRIVE
Noem stated that Pretti had “two magazines containing ammunition containing dozens of bullets” and that she did not have identifying information, adding that “this looks like a situation where a person came to the scene to inflict maximum harm on individuals and kill law enforcement officers.”
He said DHS is investigating the shooting “just like all other officer-involved shootings” and that additional details are coming soon.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., put the blame on the Trump administration, saying at a news conference Saturday, “We need ICE out of Minnesota.”
Senator Amy Klobuchar called for ICE to be removed from Minnesota while criticizing the Trump administration after the deadly attack on Border Patrol in Minneapolis. (Fox News)
“I personally warned them that there would be more deaths and there would be more of this,” he said. “And they clearly aren’t listening. So we’re asking people across the country to talk to their Republican representatives and make it clear that this is not our America. This needs to end.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to Klobuchar’s comments in an X post on Saturday, saying federal agents should not be removed from Minnesota.
“We need dangerous criminal illegal aliens removed from Minnesota. Democrats’ priorities are completely messed up. They will not keep the American people safe,” he wrote.
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In his own post, Vice President J.D. Vance blamed “far-left agitators” for the recent unrest in Minneapolis.
“This level of engineered chaos is unique to Minneapolis,” X posted Saturday evening. “This is the direct result of far-left agitators working with local authorities.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security and the White House for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
