A new national poll shows Americans turning sharply against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in the wake of the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis.
A Quinnipiac poll, conducted Jan. 8-12 among 1,133 registered voters, shows that more than half of respondents (58 percent) want Noem to be removed from her position. Only 34 percent said they want her to remain.
But the partisan split is stark. While 74 percent of Republican respondents say Noem should remain, that support collapses outside the GOP. An overwhelming 91 percent of Democratic respondents favored her removal, along with 62 percent of independents.
Noem has faced intense backlash since the shootings of Pretti and Good.
Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, was shot multiple times after intervening to assist a woman who had been shoved to the ground by federal immigration agents. His death occurred just weeks after 37‑year‑old Renée Good, a mother, was fatally shot by an ICE agent nearby.
Officials, including Noem, initially described both Pretti and Good as violent threats, claims that have been disputed by multiple videos and witness accounts.
Noem is now facing mounting calls to step down, with nearly 150 lawmakers backing an effort to impeach her.
In a letter co-authored by other House Democratic leaders, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries warned that he would lead impeachment efforts against Noem if Trump does not fire her.
“The violence unleashed on the American people by the Department of Homeland Security must end forthwith,” Jeffries wrote. “Kristi Noem should be fired immediately, or we will commence impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives. We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
Trump has defended Noem amid questions about her future. “I think she’s doing a very good job,” he told reporters. “The border is totally secure.”
However, Noem has been increasingly sidelined from the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts since the shootings, with Trump dispatching border czar Tom Homan to take charge of the federal operation in Minnesota.
A source with ties to the White House told Reuters that Homan was sent in to “recalibrate tactics” and improve cooperation with state and local officials amid rising criticism of the aggressive enforcement strategy that Noem had overseen.
On Wednesday, Homan announced a drawdown of 700 federal agents from Minnesota after Trump said his administration was “going to de-escalate a little bit.”
Meanwhile, public backlash against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement continues to intensify, with polling showing widespread disapproval of both ICE operations and the handling of high-profile shootings by federal agents.
The Quinnipiac poll found that 63 percent of respondents disapprove of how ICE enforces immigration laws, up from 57 percent in January, while just 34 percent approve. Similarly, an Ipsos poll shows 62 percent of respondents saying ICE’s actions go “too far,” including a notable 10-point increase among Republicans.
Overall, nearly six in 10 voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of immigration, according to Quinnipiac, with half saying his approach makes the country less safe.
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