GOP Sen. Cassidy breaks with Trump over deadly shooting by Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., called for a full investigation after a federal agent fatally shot a man who was allegedly armed in Minneapolis on Saturday, calling the incident "incredibly disturbing."
Cassidy joined a chorus of Democratic lawmakers raising questions following the shooting death of 37-year-old Minneapolis resident Alex J. Pretti, who was killed by a Border Patrol agent on Saturday. Pretti allegedly confronted officers during a Department of Homeland Security operation in south Minneapolis and was carrying a gun, according to the agency.
"The events in Minneapolis are incredibly disturbing," Cassidy said in a post on X. "The credibility of ICE and DHS are at stake. There must be a full joint federal and state investigation."
Cassidy added that "we can trust the American people with the truth."
The Louisiana Republican's comments were seemingly at odds with members of his party, including President Donald Trump, who said in a post on Truth Social following 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 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?" Trump wrote in the post. "The Mayor and the Governor called them off? 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!"
Last week, Trump pledged his endorsement for U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow if she entered the GOP primary in Louisiana, challenging Cassidy, who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2015. Letlow launched her Senate bid days later.
Cassidy was one of the Senate Republicans who voted to convict Trump after the House impeached him in 2021. The Senate vote ultimately fell short of the threshold required to convict Trump.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said during a news conference Saturday that the incident occurred while DHS officers carried out "targeted operations" in Minneapolis against an illegal immigrant with a violent criminal history.
"An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9-millimeter semi-automatic handgun," Noem said, adding that agents attempted to disarm him.
"The officers attempted to disarm this individual, but the armed suspect reacted violently," Noem said. "Fearing for his life and for the lives of his fellow officers around him, an agent fired defensive shots."
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Noem said Pretti had "two magazines with ammunition in them that held dozens of rounds" and no identification, adding that "this looks like a situation where an individual arrived at the scene to inflict maximum damage on individuals and to kill law enforcement."
She said DHS is investigating the shooting "just like we do all other officer-involved shootings," adding that additional details would be forthcoming.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said during a news conference Saturday that "we need ICE out of Minnesota," while placing blame on the Trump administration.
"I have personally warned them that there would be more deaths, that more of this would happen," she said. "And clearly they're not listening. So, we ask people around the country to talk to their Republican representatives to make clear that this is not the America that is ours. This has got to stop."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to Klobuchar's comments in an X post Saturday, saying federal agents should not be removed from Minnesota.
"We need dangerous criminal illegal aliens out of Minnesota. The Democrats have their priorities completely upside down. They will not keep the American people safe," she wrote.
In his own post, Vice President JD Vance blamed "far left agitators" for the recent unrest in Minneapolis.
"This level of engineered chaos is unique to Minneapolis," he posted on X Saturday evening. "It is the direct consequence of far left agitators, working with local authorities."
Fox News Digital 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.