California Governor Gavin Newsom criticized Vice President JD Vance and Arkansas Republican Senator Tom Cotton after they both posted heartless remarks about the recent killings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minneapolis.
Earlier this month, ICE agent Jonathan Ross killed Good in her car. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin claimed Good “weaponized her vehicle, attempting to run over our law enforcement officers in an attempt to kill them.”
But Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey pushed back against this narrative considering witnesses described seeing Good in the vehicle trying to flee officers when she was shot.
Pretti was killed over the weekend; multiple videos showed ICE officers removing a handgun from Pretti before fatally shooting him. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called Pretti—just like she did with Good before him—a "domestic terrorist."
Vance—who earlier referred to Good as a "deranged leftist"—took to X to shift blame away from federal agents and toward local authorities and protesters.
He told a story about off-duty ICE and CBP officers being doxxed while dining in a Minneapolis restaurant, having their location revealed and the establishment “mobbed,” with local police allegedly refusing to respond to their calls for help, forcing federal colleagues to intervene.
He framed this anecdote as evidence of “chaos” caused by state and local officials’ refusal to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement, arguing that this environment has made Minneapolis dangerous for agents and contributed to broader disorder:
"This is just a taste of what's happening in Minneapolis because state and local officials refuse to cooperate with immigration enforcement. They have created the chaos so they can have moments like yesterday, where someone tragically dies and politicians get to grandstand about the evils of enforcing the border."
"The solution is staring everyone in the face. I hope authorities in Minneapolis stop this madness."
Newsom responded to Vance with the following:
"Only a true psychopath could genuinely believe this story justifies the shooting of an innocent VA nurse."
Cotton's own response to the killings echoed Vance's suggestion that the killings could have been avoided had state and local officials cooperated with federal law enforcement:
“The deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti are regrettable tragedies. They could’ve been avoided—& further unrest can be avoided—if state & local officials work with federal law enforcement and stop encouraging civilians to interfere. There can be no mob veto on enforcing the law.”
But Newsom was firm with him as well:
"Your state has the 7th highest homicide rate in the nation — over double California’s. Spare us the grandstanding over 'enforcing the law'— you’re a heartless fraud."
Others joined him in criticizing the two GOP politicians.
The GOP is really reaching here.
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