Listen to this article with a free account
WASHINGTON — Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said in an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that she would not vote to defund the Department of Homeland Security after the latest fatal shooting of an American by a federal agent in Minneapolis.
“When they kill two residents of my state, take two-year-old children from their mothers’ arms, take an elderly Hmong man out of his home and pput it there in their underwear and then find out they have the wrong man,” Klobuchar told “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker. “No, I’m not voting for that funding.”
Several other Democrats have announced that they would vote against Funding DHS until restrictions on immigration enforcement operations are put in place after Alex Prettia 37-year-old nurse, was shot and killed by a federal officer in Minneapolis. The bill would need a handful of votes from Democrats to pass, and the Senate is expected to consider the measure this week. If the appropriations bill is not passed, the government could enter a partial shutdown at the end of the month.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Saturday that Democrats would not provide the necessary votes if DHS funding was included in the appropriations bill.
Klobuchar urged fellow Republicans to “stand up” and join Democrats in voting against defunding DHS.
“If they care about the Constitution, they should care,” she said.
Loans was killed Saturday, the second time federal agents have fatally shot someone in Minneapolis this month. Renée Nicole Good was shot and killed by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent a few weeks ago.
Witness videos seem to contradict the Trump administration’s versions of events. Administration officials painted a portrait of a person who approached law enforcement with a gun and “violently resisted” when officers attempted to disarm him. However, videos show Pretti going to help a person who was pushed by federal agents, and the videos do not appear to show Pretti holding a gun in the moments before his death.
Local officials said Pretti was a U.S. citizen and had a license to carry a firearm.
Klobuchar said she was “absolutely horrified” by the shooting and condemned the administration’s rhetoric.
“When I hear Trump administration officials describe this video in a way that simply isn’t true, I keep thinking, ‘Your eyes don’t lie,'” she said.
She urged ICE to leave her state, saying, “They’re making us less safe, not safer.” »
Megan Lebowitz is a political reporter for NBC News.
Frank Matt
,
Jon Schuppe
,
Sahil Kapoor
And
Brennan Leach
contributed
.
