By Ted Hesson, Susan Heavey and David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) – U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem during congressional testimony on Tuesday stood by her remarks calling the acts of two U.S. citizens shot dead by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis “domestic terrorism.”
Noem, who is overseeing Republican President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, was pressed about her statements by Democrats and some Republicans during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.
Shortly after Renee Good and Alex Pretti were slain in separate incidents in January, Noem said they had appeared to have been involved in acts of domestic terrorism before a full investigation into the events that led to their deaths. Video evidence subsequently undercut her assertions, and her remarks were criticized by lawmakers from both parties.
Senator Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the committee, repeatedly asked Noem if she would retract her statements concerning Good and Pretti, as well as her similar remarks about another U.S. citizen who survived after being shot five times in a confrontation with federal agents in Chicago.
“I was getting reports from the ground, from agents at the scene,” Noem testified, calling the situations chaotic but declining to retract or apologize for her statements. “I absolutely strive to provide factual information.”
Noem, appointed by Trump last year, faced tough questions from senators about Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement tactics during the hearing, her first congressional appearance since Good and Pretti were killed. The outrage caused by their deaths prompted the Trump administration to shift its strategy, moving away from large-scale, city-focused surges and toward a more targeted approach.
Under Noem, thousands of masked federal agents have been deployed to U.S. cities, where they have swept through neighborhoods in search of possible immigration offenders and clashed with residents and protesters.
Congressional Democrats have refused to agree to new funding for her department without changes to immigration enforcement practices. Funding for the 260,000-employee department lapsed last month, but most of its immigration enforcement and national security operations are deemed essential and continue.
Noem said on Tuesday that 650 federal agents remain in Minnesota, down from about 3,000 in January.
Senator Chuck Grassley, the committee’s Republican chairman, acknowledged in opening remarks that “mistakes have been made” by the administration but defended immigration officers, saying they “should never be threatened or harmed while enforcing our laws.”
Trump has said mass deportations are needed after high levels of illegal immigration under his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, and has defended Noem’s job performance.
House Democrats launched an effort in January to impeach Noem, saying immigration agents under her leadership have violated the civil rights of U.S. citizens, that she had blocked congressional oversight of detention centers for migrants, and that she gave government contracts to Republican-affiliated firms and people connected to close associates of hers.
The impeachment effort is likely to fail, with the House controlled by Republicans.
IRAN WAR
Grassley asked Noem about steps to protect against potential sleeper cells and terrorism amid the U.S.-Israel war against Iran. Noem did not cite specifics but said her department was taking a closer look at social media activity and interviews of immigrants who previously entered the United States.
“We are working every single day to find them and to make sure that we’re preventing the next attack,” said Noem, a former governor of South Dakota.
Trump’s immigration policies, once an area of strength, could now be a liability for Republicans trying to retain control of Congress in November midterm elections. A Reuters/Ipsos poll in February found that while a majority of Americans support deporting immigrants without legal status, about 60% think immigration agents have gone too far.
Senator Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina who is not seeking reelection this November, sharply criticized Noem’s handling of immigration arrests, saying her swift condemnation of Good and Pretti had eroded faith in law enforcement.
“We’re beginning to get the American people to think that deporting people is wrong. It’s the exact opposite,” Tillis said. “The way you’re going about deporting them is wrong.”
Tillis reiterated his earlier call for Noem to resign and said he would block nominations in the Senate until DHS answered questions about the crackdown and other issues.
Multiple lawmakers pressed Noem over a DHS-funded advertising campaign that reportedly cost $220 million and prominently featured her. ProPublica reported last year that a company run by the husband of outgoing DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin benefitted from the contract.
The company, the Strategy Group, had close ties to Noem and her top aide, Corey Lewandowski, ProPublica reported. The Strategy Group posted on X that it was paid $226,000 as a subcontractor for the advertising campaign to produce video and radio ads, a small portion of the total award.
Senator John Kennedy, a Republican from Louisiana, said the ad campaign boosted Noem’s “name recognition” and that the contract “puts the president in a terribly awkward spot.”
Noem said she had no role in choosing the contractors. Later in the hearing, she said she did not know whether Lewandowski had benefited financially, but would ask him.
In response to a request for comment, Lewandowski said by email that he had not been paid as part of the ad contract.
“Not one penny,” he said.
Noem is scheduled to appear before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.
(Reporting by Ted Hesson, Susan Heavey and David Shepardson; Editing by Will Dunham, Rosalba O’Brien and Daniel Wallis)
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