Amid mounting calls, Democratic leadership on Tuesday, Feb. 27, called on Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem to step aside and be impeached after federal agents’ fatal shootings in Minneapolis of two American citizens who protested Trump’s deportation policy.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Democratic Whip Katherine Clark and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar said it’s time for Noem to go.
“Taxpayer dollars are being weaponized by the Trump administration to kill American citizens, brutalize communities and violently target law-abiding immigrant families. The country is disgusted by what the Department of Homeland Security has done,” they said in a joint statement. “Republicans are planning to shut large parts of the government down on Friday so that the DHS killing spree unleashed in Minnesota can continue throughout America. That is immoral.
“Dramatic changes at the Department of Homeland Security are needed. Federal agents who have broken the law must be criminally prosecuted. The paramilitary tactics must cease and desist. Taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for everyday Americans, not kill them in cold blood,” Jeffries, Clark and Aguilar added. “The violence unleashed on the American people by the Department of Homeland Security must end forthwith. Kristi Noem should be fired immediately, or we will commence impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives.
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” they warned.
In appearing on MS NOW’s Chris Jansing Reports, Jeffries, who represents the 8th Congressional District in Brooklyn and Queens, made it clear that Democrats have called for Noem to be fired and will continue to use every avenue available to hold President Trump and DHS accountable for their “out of control behavior.”
“Kristi Noem is a despicable, corrupt, pathological liar. We’ve seen her slander not just one but two American citizens, patriotic Americans who were killed without justification on the streets of Minneapolis in the last few weeks,” he said. “She’s deeply unqualified. She never should have been confirmed to begin with by Senate Republicans. And House Democrats have called for her to be fired immediately.
“And in the event that she is not terminated, we are prepared to initiate impeachment proceedings against her in the House of Representatives,” Jeffries stressed.
“We have to build the case so that we can convince a handful of Republicans, as we have done on other issues, that the time is now to hold the Department of Homeland Security accountable for their behavior,” he added. “They are conducting themselves like a paramilitary organization as opposed to protecting the health, the safety and the well-being of the American people. They are violently targeting American citizens and law-abiding immigrant families, and it’s unacceptable, it’s unconscionable and it’s un-American.
“We’re prepared to hold hearings, as we’ve done in other instances, and use every tool available to make sure that Kristi Noem is held accountable, but even more importantly, of course, we support the effort by Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats to force common sense changes to the Department of Homeland Security so that these law enforcement agencies are behaving like every other law enforcement agency in the country, as opposed to like a paramilitary organization, which is what the American people have seen on the streets of Minneapolis,” Jeffries continued.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, also said: “I think the President needs to look at who he has in place as a secretary of Homeland Security. It probably is time for her to step down.”
In response to fatal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) shooting in Minnesota, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul also called on Noem to resign.
“This is a continuation of a deadly pattern, a pattern of violence. It is well known that earlier this month, federal agents also shot a mother of three in the face when she just extended a greeting to him. Two American families destroyed; confidence in federal law enforcement shattered… Don’t stop believing what your eyes tell you. Their cruelty, these instances, what is going on and unfolding in streets of America today shocks the conscience of every human being with a heart,” Hochul said.
“When federal agents use lethal force against civilians and then prevent state authorities from fully investigating, it violates the basic principles of a democracy,” she added. “Kristi Noem has forfeited her right to lead, and I’m calling on her to resign as Secretary of Homeland Security or Donald Trump to do the right thing and just fire her. And if not, she must be removed or impeached. And Gregory Bovino — who has helped lead, and defend and escalate these operations — should also be fired.”
But Trump has stood by Noem, lauding her work.
As he departed the White House on Tuesday for a speech in Iowa, Trump told reporters that he will not fire Noem.
During an interview later on Fox News, the president said he had confidence in Noem.
“Who closed up the border? She did, with Tom Homan, with the whole group,” Trump said. “I mean, they’ve closed up the border. The border is a tremendous success.”
