Southeast Asia Information Port News (www.dnyxxg.com) – Another shooting death of a U.S. citizen by federal law enforcement officers occurred in Minnesota on the 24th. This is the fifth such shooting incident involving federal law enforcement officers this year, fueling growing public protests and escalating conflicts between the federal and local governments.
Several Democratic senators condemned these immigration enforcement actions on the 24th, stating they would vote against a temporary funding bill that includes funding for federal law enforcement agencies. This latest development increases the possibility of another federal government shutdown.
Minneapolis, Minnesota's largest city, experienced another immigration enforcement shooting on the morning of the 24th, resulting in the death of a 37-year-old U.S. male citizen. Local police confirmed the deceased was Alex Pretti, a local resident and nurse, whose records show he possessed a legal gun license.
Regarding the cause of the incident, federal agencies and local police offer conflicting accounts. The Department of Homeland Security stated that the deceased resisted arrest with a gun, and federal law enforcement officers fired "in self-defense," with a Border Patrol officer shooting the officer. A video uploaded to social media shows multiple law enforcement officers surrounding a man who falls to the ground amid gunfire. Local media reports that video footage taken before the incident shows the man not approaching the officers with a gun, but rather holding a cell phone, seemingly filming their actions. Local police stated they have not yet received an official report from federal agencies regarding the cause of the shooting, but "the video itself speaks for itself."
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both Democrats, condemned the incident and called on President Trump to immediately end the crackdown on undocumented immigrants in the state. Hundreds of protesters took to the streets to protest the renewed killings by federal law enforcement.
The Trump administration's large-scale immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota earlier this month has already resulted in the deaths of two American citizens. On March 7, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers shot and killed American citizen Ryan Nicole Goode during an arrest of an undocumented immigrant in Minneapolis, sparking protests in the city and surrounding areas. According to Reuters, there have been five shootings and fatalities by federal law enforcement officers across the United States this year, and at least six immigrants have died under mysterious circumstances in federal detention centers, with the causes of death still under investigation.
According to statistics from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 69,000 people have been detained in immigration enforcement operations this year, of whom approximately 43% have not faced criminal charges or had prior criminal records.
The Minnesota conflict has drawn condemnation from Democrats and could jeopardize the passage of a key temporary funding bill, increasing the risk of another federal government shutdown.
The U.S. Congress passed a temporary federal funding bill last December, ending the longest shutdown in U.S. federal government history, which lasted 43 days. The temporary funding bill expires at the end of this month, and Congress must pass a new funding bill before the end of the month, otherwise many federal government agencies will shut down again.
The House of Representatives has passed the aforementioned funding bill, which now awaits a vote in the Senate. Although Trump's Republican Party controls a majority in the Senate, the bill still needs the support of at least a few Democratic senators to pass. Several previously wavering Democratic senators stated on the 24th that they would vote against a temporary funding bill, depriving law enforcement agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of funding within the Department of Homeland Security, due to their dissatisfaction with the Trump administration's immigration enforcement actions.
Nevada Democratic Senator Kathryn Cortez-Masto stated, "I will not support the current Department of Homeland Security funding bill." She criticized the Trump administration and the Department of Homeland Security for "sending untrained, aggressive federal law enforcement officers to the streets without any accountability."
Virginia Democratic Senator Mark Warner posted on social media, "This brutal repression must end… As long as this federal government continues to violently occupy our cities, I cannot and will not vote to fund the Department of Homeland Security." (Wang Hongbin)
