President Donald Trump has responded to the latest shooting death of a U.S. citizen at the hands of federal agents in Minneapolis with a rant about alleged Democrat corruption.
Trump wrote a post on Truth Social less than two hours after a 37-year-old legal firearm owner was gunned down by federal agents on Saturday morning. The post accompanied a picture of the gun that the victim carried.
“This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about? Where are the local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers? The Mayor and the Governor called them off?” the post began.
“It is stated that many of these Police were not allowed to do their job, that ICE had to protect themselves — Not an easy thing to do! Why does Ilhan Omar have $34 Million Dollars in her account? And where are the Tens of Billions of Dollars that have been stolen from the once Great State of Minnesota?”
The victim of the shooting has been identified as Alex Pretti, according toThe Minnesota Star-Tribune.
open image in galleryThe president has long been critical of Minneapolis Rep. Ilhan Omar, a U.S. citizen who was born in Somalia, and encouraged her to go back to her home country.
“We are there because of massive Monetary Fraud, with Billions of Dollars missing, and Illegal Criminals that were allowed to infiltrate the State through the Democrats’ Open Border Policy. We want the money back, and we want it back, NOW,” Trump continued.
“Those Fraudsters who stole the money are going to jail, where they belong! This is no different than a really big Bank Robbery. Much of what you’re witnessing is a COVER UP for this Theft and Fraud. The Mayor and the Governor are inciting Insurrection, with their pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric!”
“Instead, these sanctimonious political fools should be looking for the Billions of Dollars that has been stolen from the people of Minnesota, and the United States of America. LET OUR ICE PATRIOTS DO THEIR JOB! 12,000 Illegal Alien Criminals, many of them violent, have been arrested and taken out of Minnesota. If they were still there, you would see something far worse than you are witnessing today!”
The president quickly followed up that post by saying: “AMONG OTHER THINGS, THIS IS A “COVER UP” FOR THE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS THAT HAVE BEEN STOLEN FROM THE ONCE GREAT STATE (BUT SOON TO BE GREAT AGAIN!) OF MINNESOTA! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP.”
open image in galleryFor her part, Omar has already responded to Saturday’s shooting, calling it “an execution by immigration enforcement.”
“ I am absolutely heartbroken, horrified, and appalled that federal agents murdered another member of our community. It is beyond shameful these federal agents are targeting our residents instead of protecting them,” Omar added.
The lawmaker accused the Trump administration of “administration is trying to beat us into submission rather than protect us.”
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said a 37-year-old man was killed but declined to identify him. He added that information about what led up to the shooting was limited.
Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that federal officers were conducting an operation as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and fired “defensive shots” after a man with a handgun approached them and “violently resisted” when officers tried to disarm him. O’Hara said police believe the man was a “lawful gun owner with a permit to carry.”
open image in galleryThe police chief appealed for calm, both from the public and from federal law enforcement.
“Our demand today is for those federal agencies that are operating in our city to do so with the same discipline, humanity and integrity that effective law enforcement in this country demands,” the chief said. “We urge everyone to remain peaceful. We recognize that there is a lot of anger and a lot of questions around what has happened, but we need people to remain peaceful.”
The shooting happened amid widespread daily protests in the Twin Cities since the Jan. 7 shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good, who was killed when an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer fired into her vehicle. Saturday’s shooting unfolded just over a mile away from where Good was shot.
After the shooting, an angry crowd gathered and screamed profanities at federal officers, calling them “cowards” and telling them to go home. One officer responded mockingly as he walked away, telling them: “Boo hoo.” Agents elsewhere shoved a yelling protester into a car. Protesters dragged garbage dumpsters from alleyways to block the streets, and people who gathered chanted, “ICE out now,” referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.