By USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
Michigan’s two US senators say they plan to vote against a Department of Homeland Security funding bill this week, joining a pushback from fellow Senate Democrats following another fatal shooting in Minnesota by federal agents this past weekend.
“As all Americans can see with their own eyes, ICE and those under their command are not acting as responsible law enforcement agencies,” Sen. Elissa Slotkin said in a statement on Saturday, Jan. 24. “They are recklessly inciting violence at the whims of the President. And they must be reined in before there is more killing.”
Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse for Veterans Affairs, was shot multiple times and killed on Saturday by US Border Patrol agents, in Minneapolis. Pretti’s encounter with immigration authorities — which was captured on video by multiple bystanders — and his death ignited further protests in a state already reeling from the Jan. 7 fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent.
Among those speaking out in Michigan were Democratic members of Congress and Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield, who said Detroit stands with the citizens of Minnesota.
US Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, responding Saturday on X to the killing of Pretti, said the Trump administration “must turn the temperature down and stop this horrific violence.” He said ICE’s operations in Minneapolis are “causing chaos and fear.” He called for a “full and impartial investigation” by local police in Minnesota.
On Sunday, Jan. 25, Peters went further, saying in a statement that he plans to vote no on the DHS funding bill this week “because it lacks necessary reforms to immigration enforcement.”
“DHS’ current immigration enforcement operations are not protecting our homeland security or making American communities safer. They are causing chaos and fear. They are violating Americans’ constitutional rights. We need stronger guardrails and accountability,” he said.
Senators have days to approve a massive spending package. Bills include annual funding for the Department of Homeland Security and money for ICE and US Customs and Border Protection. The bills would impose new restrictions on the department such as requiring de-escalation training for agents and adding more oversight of detention facilities. The measure passed the House of Representatives on Jan. 22 before it went to the Senate, within a larger funding package.
