Senate Republicans Turn on Kristi Noem Over Minneapolis Shootings

The political fallout from the deadly Minneapolis shootings during DHS immigration operations is hitting hard in Washington and it’s coming from inside the GOP.

Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Thom Tillis (R-NC), two long-time critics of the MAGA wing of the Republican Party, are now openly calling for Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to step down. The demand follows the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good, two individuals shot during federal immigration enforcement activity in the Twin Cities.

“She needs to go,” said Tillis, bluntly. Murkowski added, “I would not support her again… it probably is time for her to step down.”

Noem, a former governor turned DHS Secretary, has been a fierce enforcer of President Trump’s immigration agenda, overseeing operations in sanctuary jurisdictions like Minneapolis. The area has become a hotbed of violent protest and institutional obstruction to federal law enforcement conditions that have only worsened in recent months.

But rather than backing away, Trump stood firmly behind his appointee.

“She’s doing a very good job,” the president said Tuesday, rejecting calls for her resignation. “The border is totally secure.”

The White House insists the Minneapolis operations were justified, though investigations are still ongoing. Noem had identified Pretti as a “domestic terrorist” in the immediate aftermath of the incident—a label that drew swift backlash from the left and, now, even from some on the right.

Tillis in particular took aim at Noem and senior adviser Stephen Miller, accusing them of prematurely labeling Pretti without full facts and undermining the administration’s credibility.

“That is amateur hour at its worst,” he said. “If immigration reform dies on the table, it’ll be because of people like Noem and Miller giving the president bad advice.”

Murkowski also weighed in, pointing to deeper issues under Noem’s leadership. “She has not controlled these situations that fall under her jurisdiction,” the Alaska senator said. “She must be accountable for the chaos.”

Let’s be clear: this isn’t about policy anymore—this is about political optics, and establishment Republicans are seizing the moment. With the DHS funding bill on the line and Senate Democrats threatening a shutdown, Murkowski and Tillis are playing into the left’s narrative of “accountability” while undermining their own party's leadership.

And what do they offer in return? Nothing but Beltway blame-shifting.

Facts that matter:

• The Minneapolis protests were triggered by lawful DHS immigration operations in a sanctuary city with a long history of obstructing federal law.

• Alex Pretti was previously flagged by law enforcement and was under surveillance during the time of the operation.

• Renee Good was killed during a chaotic altercation involving federal agents attempting to serve a high-risk warrant.

• Neither Tillis nor Murkowski are offering alternative strategies—only demanding resignations as the left tries to gut DHS funding.

While they stop short of impeachment talk, the message from Murkowski and Tillis is clear: they want to weaken Trump’s inner circle just as his second term gains momentum.

Meanwhile, on the ground, DHS agents are facing escalating threats, media smears, and a federal bureaucracy still riddled with holdovers who sabotage enforcement from within.

President Trump is right to stand by Noem. She’s doing the job few in D.C. have the spine to do holding the line against sanctuary chaos and pushing back on cities that treat federal agents like the enemy.

Tillis and Murkowski may pander to the Sunday shows, but voters remember who’s actually trying to secure the country and who folds the second the media turns up the heat.

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