A typically sympathetic Murdoch‑owned outlet, the New York Post, broke from its usual stance to sharply criticize the Trump administration’s handling of the fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis.
In an op-ed published on Sunday, the New York Post argued that the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement in Minneapolis, where President Donald Trump has deployed thousands of federal immigration agents, is backfiring politically.
While the paper acknowledges the government’s authority to act, it warns that public perception is turning against the federal response, especially among swing voters, Hispanics, and independents, who “see U.S. citizens dying at federal agents’ hands, and recoil in horror.”
“These enforcement tactics won’t turn the tide, instead they are backfiring,” the Post wrote.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
Veterans Affairs ICU nurse Alex Pretti, 37, was shot dead in the street on Saturday by federal agents who pepper-sprayed him in the face and then wrestled him to the ground before shooting him.
Federal officials initially claimed Pretti approached officers with a handgun and resisted violently, justifying the use of force.
Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino claimed that Pretti confronted officers with a gun and “wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.”
At the same time, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller labeled Pretti an “assassin” who “tried to murder” federal agents in a post on X.
However, bystander video footage and multiple witness statements contradict that narrative. Video clips verified by outlets show Pretti holding only a phone, not a gun, before agents used pepper spray and tackled him to the ground. In some videos, an agent appears to remove a firearm from Pretti’s waistband shortly before shots are fired, and at least 10 shots can be heard as he lies on the pavement.
Pretti’s death followed the fatal shooting of 37-year-old mother Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis earlier this month.
Since then, polls have shown Americans turning on Trump and his immigration strategy. A YouGov poll conducted on Jan. 25 showed that about half (48 percent) of respondents do not think the shooting of Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday was justified.
Another YouGov poll showed that 52 percent of Americans think the Trump administration’s efforts to restrict immigration to the U.S. have gone too far. That includes 56 percent of independents and 64 percent of Hispanics, who will be crucial to the Republicans in the 2026 midterms.
The editorial went on to criticize the administration’s rhetoric and strategy, saying the “alacritous and misleading rhetoric coming out of the administration needs to stop” and that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem should “take a break from her self-promoting and combative TV hits.”
Noem has repeatedly branded Pretti a “domestic terrorist.”
“This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers committed an act of domestic terrorism. That’s the facts,” she said at a news conference Saturday.
The Post called for a more measured approach, urging the president to “cool things down, and let the American public see calm leadership,” and stressed that aggressive enforcement now risks more violence and public outrage: “Having Homeland Security double down now is all too likely to produce more such scenes.”
It added: “Mr. President, the American people didn’t vote for these scenes and you can’t continue to order them to not believe their lying eyes.”
But it wasn’t just the Trump administration that came under fire. The editorial also called out Minnesota’s Democratic Governor Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey, who the Post says “have been failing to do their jobs, or worse: ordering local law enforcement to stay away from the confrontation the hard left demands,” noting that Walz only called in the National Guard after a delay.
After the shooting by federal agents sparked protests and unrest, Walz activated the Minnesota National Guard. He also publicly called for the withdrawal of federal agents from Minneapolis, saying the presence of “3,000 untrained agents” risks further violence and that Trump needs to pull them out before “they kill another person.”
The New York Post has long been considered one of Trump’s most supportive mainstream media outlets, often backing his campaigns and amplifying his messaging. The Rupert Murdoch‑owned tabloid endorsed Trump for president in past elections, praising him as an “imperfect messenger carrying a vital message” in 2016.
Trump himself has cited the Post as one of his preferred newspapers.
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