President Donald Trump has said his federal immigration forces will “de-escalate a little bit” in Minnesota after the fatal shootings of protesters Alex Pretti and Renee Good provoked outrage.
The president was speaking to Fox News after delivering an address on affordability in Des Moines, Iowa, and was careful to stress that the shift was not a “pullback,” mindful that ICE’s operations still have strong support among his MAGA base and that any retreat could trigger a backlash.
Trump moved Monday to place border czar Tom Homan in charge of his illegal immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, removed Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino and held crisis talks at the White House with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Also Tuesday, the president was less than sympathetic towards Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar after she was sprayed with a substance from a syringe by a man at a town hall meeting, telling reporters he had not seen video of the attack but that Omar “probably had herself sprayed, knowing her.
Police tackled her assailant at the scene and took him into custody before Omar resumed speaking. She had earlier called for Noem to “resign or face impeachment” over the killing of Pretti.
Key Points
- Donald Trump says his forces will ‘de-escalate a little bit’ following Minneapolis shootings
- Trump says Ilhan Omar ‘probably had herself sprayed’ after town hall attack
- Suspect detained after representative sprayed with unknown substance
- Congresswoman reacts to attack: 'I've survived war'
- Stephen Miller admits federal agents in Alex Pretti shooting 'may not have been following protocol'
Trump ignores Minnesota uproar and tries sticking to economy in Iowa
09:30 , Joe SommerladDuring his speech at the Horizon Events Center in Clive, Iowa, yesterday, the president brushed over the recent chaos in Minnesota and did not even directly address the killing of 37-year-old Alex Pretti that has sparked outrage across the country.
Instead, reading from a teleprompter, he focused mostly on a defense of his administration’s economic record.
Trump boasted that the American economy is “booming,” even as surveys show consumer confidence hitting the lowest levels in a decade and the job market cooling into a “low hire, low fire” labor environment due to continued uncertainty over the long-term effects of his policies.
He also bragged about agreements his administration has made under which countries will import large quantities of corn-based ethanol fuel – an important product for Iowa’s farmers – even though his use of tariffs and threats against Greenland and other Nato allies has led to many of those handshake deals being suspended or delayed.
Here’s a full report from Andrew Feinberg.
Trump ignores Minnesota uproar in Iowa speech as Republicans call for Noem’s head
Donald Trump says his forces will ‘de-escalate a little bit’ following Minneapolis shootings
09:12 , Joe SommerladPresident Donald Trump has said his federal immigration forces will “de-escalate a little bit” in Minnesota after the fatal shootings of protesters Alex Pretti and Renee Good provoked outrage.
The president was speaking to Fox News after delivering an address on affordability in Des Moines, Iowa, and was careful to stress that the shift was not a “pullback,” mindful that ICE’s operations still have strong support among his MAGA base and that any retreat could trigger a backlash.
A White House insider has already told The Daily Mail that the president backing down in the northern state would amount to the worst betrayal of Republican voters since George HW Bush rowed back on his no-new-taxes pledge in the early 1990s.
“If Trump backs down on deportations, he might as well pack it in,” the source said. “It will be the biggest betrayal to the base since George HW Bush raised taxes.”
Trump moved Monday to place border czar Tom Homan in charge of his illegal immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, removed Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino and held crisis talks at the White House with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Elsewhere in his interview with Fox’s Will Cain, the president downplayed events in the state as “hoopla,” reminded viewers that Pretti was armed when he was killed, and lamented his loss of support from Good’s bereaved parents.
Trump: "A lot of what's going on with respect to Minneapolis -- with all the hoopla -- is so people don't talk about the fraud. It's a distraction." pic.twitter.com/joddZjg2Ph
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 27, 2026
CAIN: Have you retreated in Minnesota?
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 27, 2026
TRUMP: It's just the opposite. I was called by the governor and mayor -- 'How do you we do something, please?' I think it's bad for them. I don't think it's bad for us. I think it's bad for them. pic.twitter.com/ipWcVbnM8S
Trump: "I don't like the fact that he was carrying a gun that was fully loaded and he had 2 magazines with him. That's pretty unusual. Nobody knows when they saw that gun." pic.twitter.com/eL9wbBkQ4i
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 27, 2026
Trump on Renee Good: "I know her parents were big Trump fans. Makes me feel bad anyway, but I mean I guess you could say even worse. They were tremendous Trump people." pic.twitter.com/tSL8tVDrc5
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 27, 2026
Watch: Woman who recorded Alex Pretti shooting say federal government still not contacted her
08:35 , Joe SommerladAOC calls on Trump and Vance to 'look in the mirror' after Ilhan Omar town hall incident
08:00 , Rachel DobkinRepresentative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has called on President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance to “look in the mirror” after her Democratic colleague Ilhan Omar was sprayed with an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday night.
“It is not a coincidence that after days of President Trump and VP Vance putting Rep. Omar in their crosshairs with slanderous public attacks, she gets assaulted at her town hall,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on X. “Thank God she is okay. If they want leaders to take down the temp, they need to look in the mirror.”
The president has repeatedly criticized Omar, calling her “garbage” as he targets Somali immigrants in Minnesota.
Most recently, Trump said in a speech in Iowa earlier Tuesday that immigrants “have to be proud, not like Ilhan Omar” to enter the country.
On Monday, Vance pushed back on a statement from Omar regarding a letter Attorney General Pam Bondi sent to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. In the letter, which was shared by The New York Times, Bondi asks Walz to turn over voter rolls “to confirm that Minnesota’s voter registration practices comply with federal law.”
Omar claimed the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota was really about “rigging elections.”
“‘ICE will leave Minnesota if you hand over your voter rolls’ tells you everything you need to know. This was never about immigration or fraud. It was always about rigging elections,” she wrote on X Sunday.
Vance replied with his own accusation: “‘We really want illegal aliens to vote in elections and will riot to ensure that it is so.’"
A spokesperson from the Department of Justice told Fox News Digital that Democrats were “shamelessly lying” about the contents of Bondi’s letter.
Ilhan Omar thanks constituents who 'rallied behind me' after she was sprayed with a substance at town hall
07:30 , Rachel DobkinRepresentative Ilhan Omar has thanked her constituents who “rallied behind me” after she was sprayed with an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday night.
I’m ok. I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) January 28, 2026
I don’t let bullies win.
Grateful to my incredible constituents who rallied behind me. Minnesota strong.
Former DHS head Chad Wolf said he 'would not have' called Alex Pretti a domestic terrorist
07:00 , Rachel DobkinChad Wolf, who served as acting secretary for the Department of Homeland Security during President Donald Trump’s first term, said he “would not have” called Alex Pretti a domestic terrorist.
After Pretti was fatally shot in a confrontation involving Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis over the weekend, the current DHS Secretary Kristi Noem called him a “domestic terrorist,” without providing evidence.
When asked by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins whether he would have called Pretti a domestic terrorist, Wolf said, “I would not have made that comment.”
Chad Wolf, who ran DHS during President Trump's first term, on whether he would have labeled Alex Pretti as a domestic terrorist: "I would not have made that comment." pic.twitter.com/4yLvZFejnE
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) January 28, 2026
Minneapolis mayor responds to Ilhan Omar town hall incident: 'Unacceptable'
06:30 , Rachel DobkinAfter Representative Ilhan Omar was sprayed by an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday night, Mayor Jacob Frey called the incident “Unacceptable.”
“Violence and intimidation have no place in Minneapolis. We can disagree without putting people at risk,” he wrote on X. “I’m relieved Rep. @Ilhan Omar is okay and appreciate MPD [Minneapolis Police Department] for responding quickly. This kind of behavior will not be tolerated in our city.”
Trump says Omar ‘probably had herself sprayed’ after Minneapolis town hall attack
06:09 , Brendan RasciusPresident Donald Trump said that Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, “probably had herself sprayed” after she was doused with an unknown substance during a Minneapolis town hall on Tuesday.
When asked by an ABC News reporter whether he had seen a video of the incident, the Republican president responded, “No. I don't think about her. I think she's a fraud. I really don't think about that.”
“She probably had herself sprayed, knowing her,” Trump added.
Democrats appear to suggest that Trump is to blame after a man 'assaulted' Ilhan Omar
06:00 , Rachel DobkinDemocrats on the House Homeland Security Committee have appeared to suggest that President Donald Trump is to blame after a man sprayed Congresswoman Ilhan Omar with an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday night.
“Trump attacks Rep. Omar every day for doing her job instead of doing his own. Now a violent, deranged man assaulted her at a town hall. It’s not a coincidence,” the Democrats wrote on X.
The president has repeatedly criticized Omar, calling her “garbage” as he targets Somali immigrants in Minnesota.
Most recently, Trump said in a speech in Iowa earlier Tuesday that immigrants “have to be proud, not like Ilhan Omar” to enter the country.
Alex Pretti shooting witness says she still has not been contacted by the feds
05:30 , Rachel DobkinA woman who filmed the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti at the hands of Border Patrol has said she still has not been contacted by the federal government.
When asked in an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper what that tells her about the situation, Stella Carlson said, “That they’re protecting themselves and they don’t care about the truth of what happened.”
Wow. The woman who recorded Alex Pretti's shooting tells @andersoncooper she has still not been contacted by anyone in the federal government as part of its investigation. pic.twitter.com/XSyMOiGQ0e
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) January 28, 2026
The Department of Homeland Security said Pretti approached federal officers with a handgun in Minneapolis over the weekend and that, “fearing for his life,” an agent fired “defensive shots.” Footage of the incident appears to show Pretti with a phone in his hand, not a gun. A gun was tucked into his waistband, according to the footage.
DHS review doesn't say Alex Pretti brandished a gun during fatal shooting
05:15 , Rachel DobkinA review by Customs and Border Protection’s internal watchdog did not say that Alex Pretti brandished a gun during a confrontation with federal agents that resulted in his death, according to an email sent to Congress that was reviewed by The New York Times.
Pretti, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, was fatally shot by Border Patrol in Minneapolis over the weekend.
The Department of Homeland Security said a person approached officers with a handgun during a targeted operation against an “illegal alien wanted for violent assault.” According to footage of the incident, Pretti had his gun tucked in his waistband.
Chuck Schumer calls for 'ALL of ICE out of Minnesota now'
05:00 , Rachel DobkinSenate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has called for every single Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent to leave Minnesota immediately.
“Alex Pretti did not deserve to die. Renee Nicole Good did not deserve to die,” Schumer wrote on X Tuesday, referring to the two fatal shootings involving federal immigration agents in Minneapolis this past month. “Enough is enough. ALL of ICE out of Minnesota now.”
Alex Pretti did not deserve to die.
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) January 27, 2026
Renee Nicole Good did not deserve to die.
Enough is enough.
ALL of ICE out of Minnesota now.
Schumer has also signaled he will not support a House-passed spending bill to keep the government open because of the funding it gives to the Department of Homeland Security.
“I will vote no on any legislation that funds ICE until it is reined in and overhauled, and Senate Democrats are overwhelmingly united on this issue,” he said on the Senate floor Tuesday.
Tim Walz says he's 'glad' Ilhan Omar is 'safe' after town hall
04:40 , Rachel DobkinMinnesota Governor Tim Walz has reacted after Representative Ilhan Omar was sprayed with an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday night.
“I’m glad that Congresswoman Omar is safe,” Walz wrote on X. “Our state has been shattered by political violence in the last year. The cruel, inflammatory, dehumanizing rhetoric by our nation’s leaders needs to stop immediately.”
Minnesota lawmakers Melissa Hortman and John Hoffman were targeted in two separate attacks in June 2025. Vance Boelter has been accused of murdering Hortman and injuring Hoffman in the shootings.
Homan says meetings with Walz and Frey is a 'starting point'
04:20 , Rachel DobkinPresident Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan has said that his meetings with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and “top law enforcement officials” on Tuesday were a “starting point” amid tensions between federal immigration agents and the city.
Today I met with Governor Walz, Mayor Frey, and top law enforcement officials to discuss the issues on the ground in Minnesota. We all agree that we need to support our law enforcement officers and get criminals off the streets. While we don’t agree on everything, these meetings…
— Thomas D. Homan (@RealTomHoman) January 27, 2026
Another Republican Senate says Kristi Noem should go
04:00 , Eric GarciaSen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said Secretary Kristi Noem should go after the killing of Alex Pretti.“
As the Secretary of Homeland Security, I would not support her again, and I think it probably is time for her to step down,” she told The Independent.
“She's taken a direction that has not been helpful to the situation and I don't think that it helps the country.”
Nancy Mace is 'deeply disturbed' after Ilhan Omar was 'attacked'
03:40 , Rachel DobkinRepresentative Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican who has harshly criticized her Democratic colleague Ilhan Omar in the past, has said that she is “deeply disturbed” after the Minnesota congresswoman was sprayed with an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday night.
“I am deeply disturbed to learn that Rep. Ilhan Omar was attacked at a town hall today. Regardless of how vehemently I disagree with her rhetoric - and I do - no elected official should face physical attacks. This is not who we are,” Mace wrote on X.
U.S. Capitol Police says man who 'decided to assault' Ilhan Omar will face 'the most serious charges possible'
03:20 , Rachel DobkinU.S. Capitol Police has said that the man who “decided to assault” Representative Ilhan Omar will face “the most serious charges possible.”
Omar was speaking at a town hall in Minneapolis Tuesday night when she was sprayed with an unknown substance. She is “okay,” according to her team.
”Tonight, a man is in custody after he decided to assault a Member of Congress - an unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice,” Capitol Police said in a statement shared by Fox News’ Chad Pergram. “We are now working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society."
From USCP on Omar assault at town hall:
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) January 28, 2026
”Tonight, a man is in custody after he decided to assault a Member of Congress - an unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice. We are grateful for the rapid response of onsite security and our local law enforcement…
Ilhan Omar reacts to town hall incident: 'I've survived war and I'm definitely going to survive intimidation'
03:00 , Rachel DobkinRepresentative Ilhan Omar has responded after getting sprayed with an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday night.
“I've survived war and I'm definitely going to survive intimidation and whatever these people think they can throw at me because I’m built that way,” the Minnesota Democrat told CNN after the incident.
Omar was born in Somalia and fled civil war with her family when she was just a girl. They later immigrated to America in the 1990s.
CNN: Are you okay?
— Acyn (@Acyn) January 28, 2026
Omar: I've survived war. And I'm definitely going to survive intimidation and whatever these people think they can throw at me because I'm built that way. pic.twitter.com/iXo8ge8j3L
Ilhan Omar is 'okay' and continued her town hall after a man sprayed her with a substance
02:35 , Rachel DobkinDemocratic Representative Ilhan Omar is “okay” and continued her town hall in Minneapolis Tuesday night after a man sprayed her with an unknown substance, her office said.
The Office of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) issued the following statement following the incident at her town hall in North Minneapolis.
— Rep. Ilhan Omar (@Ilhan) January 28, 2026
“During her town hall, an agitator tried to attack the Congresswoman by spraying an unknown substance with a syringe. Security and the Minneapolis…
Suspect detained after Rep. Ilhan Omar sprayed with unknown substance during Minneapolis town hall
02:24 , Brendan RasciusA man was tackled to the ground and detained after he sprayed an unknown substance at Rep. Ilhan Omar during a town hall in Minneapolis on Tuesday evening, video footage shows.
Omar — a Minnesota Democrat who is frequently singled out for derision by President Donald Trump — was addressing a crowded room when the incident occurred.
After she criticized the president's immigration crackdown in her state and called on DHS Secretary Kristi Noem to resign, a man near the front rushed to the lectern. He shouted at the congresswoman and sprayed her with an unknown material.
Soon after, the man was tackled to the ground and detained.
Read on...
Suspect detained after Ilhan Omar sprayed with substance during Minneapolis town hall
Joe Biden finally comments on Minnesota ICE shootings and accuses Trump of going against nation’s ‘core values’
02:20 , Isabel KeaneFormer President Joe Biden has slammed the killing of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis, saying the shooting “betrays our most basic values as Americans.”
Biden joins fellow former Democratic presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton to decry Saturday’s fatal shooting of Pretti, as well as the January 7 killing of Renee Nicole Good, calling for “full, fair and transparent investigations” into both.
“We are not a nation that guns down our citizens in the street. We are not a nation that allows our citizens to be brutalized for exercising their constitutional rights. We are not a nation that tramples the 4th Amendment and tolerates our neighbors being terrorized,” Biden wrote in a statement on X.
He continued: “The people of Minnesota have stood strong — helping community members in unimaginable circumstances, speaking out against injustice when they see it, and holding our government accountable to the people.”
Read more...
Democrat joins anti-ICE protesters in Phoenix
02:00 , Rachel DobkinCongresswoman Yassamin Ansari, an Arizona Democrat, has joined a demonstration of protesters against Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Phoenix.
“We are walking to the downtown ICE field office with hundreds of people demanding that ICE get out of Phoenix,” Ansari said in a video posted to X on Tuesday. “Yesterday, there were federal agents at Zipps across the valley, causing fear in our communities and especially after what happened in Minnesota, we cannot let that stand.”
We’re marching from the Zipps on Central to the ICE Field Office downtown. Proud of our community for showing up and demanding ICE out of our neighborhoods. pic.twitter.com/wlHTSmPaQB
— Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (@RepYassAnsari) January 27, 2026
Trump ignores Minnesota uproar and tries sticking to economy in Iowa as Republicans call for Noem’s head
01:40 , Andrew FeinbergPresident Donald Trump’s first stop on the long road to the 2026 midterm elections ended after he spoke for just over an hour with hardly any mention of the firestorm consuming his administration over the fatal shooting of a 37-year-old Minnesota man by a Border Patrol officer just days ago.
Speaking at the Horizon Events Center in Clive, Iowa, the president’s remarks, which he appeared to read directly from a teleprompter while eschewing the stream-of-consciousness “weave” that characterizes most of his public appearances, focused mostly on a defense of his administration’s economic record.
He claimed he’d spearheaded “the most dramatic one year turnaround of any country in history in terms of the speed” over his first year back in power while boasting that the American economy is “booming” even as surveys show American consumer confidence hitting the lowest levels in a decade and the job market cooling into a “low hire, low fire” labor environment due to continued uncertainty over the effects his policies will have over the long term.
Read on...
Trump ignores Minnesota uproar in Iowa speech as Republicans call for Noem’s head
Ilhan Omar sprayed with substance at Minneapolis town hall
01:29 , Rachel DobkinRepresentative Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, was sprayed with an unknown substance at a Minneapolis town hall Tuesday.
According to video of the incident, Omar was speaking at a podium when a man lunged at her.
“ICE cannot be reformed. It cannot be rehabilitated. We must abolish ICE for good,” Omar said moments before the incident. “DHS Secretary Kristi Noem must resign or face impeachment.”
Stephen Miller says federal agents in Alex Pretti shooting 'may not have been following protocol'
01:16 , Rachel DobkinWhite House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller has questioned wheather the the federal agents involved in the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis over the weekend were following protocol.
The immigration hardliner told CNN that the White House “provided clear guidance to DHS [Department of Homeland Security] that the extra personnel that had been sent to Minnesota for force protection should be used for conducting fugitive operations to create a physical barrier between the arrest teams and the disruptors.”
“We are evaluating why the CBP [Customs and Border Protection] team may not have been following that protocol,” he said.
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Federal immigration agents were stopped from entering Ecuadorian consulate in Minneapolis: report
00:45 , Rachel DobkinFederal immigration agents were stopped from entering the Ecuadorian consulate in Minneapolis, the Associated Press reported, citing the country’s foreign minister.
DHS makes clear ICE isn't going anywhere as Minneapolis mayor continues calls for agents to leave city
00:40 , Rachel DobkinThe Department of Homeland Security has made clear that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers aren’t going anywhere as Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey continues his calls for federal agents to leave the city.
“Operation Metro Surge continues to remove criminal illegal aliens from the neighborhoods of Minnesota. We are putting Minnesotans FIRST and getting violent criminals out of our communities,” DHS wrote on X Tuesday night. “The brave agents of @ICEgov risk their lives every day to arrest and deport the WORST of the WORST.”
Operation Metro Surge continues to remove criminal illegal aliens from the neighborhoods of Minnesota. We are putting Minnesotans FIRST and getting violent criminals out of our communities.
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) January 28, 2026
The brave agents of @ICEgov risk their lives every day to arrest and deport the WORST of…
Earlier Tuesday, Frey said that he met with President Donald Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, where he “reiterated that my main ask is for Operation Metro Surge to end as quickly as possible.”
Today, Chief O'Hara and I met with Border Czar Homan and had a productive conversation. I reiterated that my main ask is for Operation Metro Surge to end as quickly as possible. Public safety works best when it's built on community trust, not tactics that create fear or division.
— Mayor Jacob Frey (@MayorFrey) January 27, 2026
As Trump sent Homan to Minnesota, Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino was reportedly leaving Minneapolis in the wake of the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti.
Read more...
Greg Bovino set to leave Minneapolis and could ‘retire,’ report says
Republican Senator says Kristi Noem should be out of a job
00:20 , Eric GarciaSen. Thom Tillis, a retiring Republican from North Carolina, blasted Kristi Noem and said she needed to give up her job as Secretary of Homeland Security.
“I think that what she's done in Minnesota should be disqualifying. She should be out of a job. And I mean, really, it's just, it's just amateurish.”
Tillis told The Independent that she had squandered Trump’s goodwill on immigration and securing the border.
“I mean, there's no question that we won the election there, and now these people like Noem are squandering the opportunity to be able to codify that good policy and maybe even get to a reasonable discussion about immigration reform,” he said.
He also blasted border patrol official Greg Bovino.
“Bovino, whatever his name is, he needs to go back to California, get us retirement papers and go. These people are amateurs. They got to de-escalate there and treat these communities with some respect.”
Trump makes no mention of Alex Pretti in Iowa speech
Tuesday 27 January 2026 23:58 , Rachel DobkinPresident Donald Trump made no mention of Alex Pretti, the 37-year-old U.S. citizen who was fatally shot by Border Patrol over the weekend, in his speech in Iowa Tuesday.
The speech focused on the economy, but Trump also touched on immigration, criticizing former President Joe Biden’s “open border” policies.
Earlier Tuesday, Trump did express sympathy for Pretti, but also insinuated blame on him for carrying a gun.
“You can’t walk in with guns,” Trump told reporters. “You can’t do that.” He called the shooting a “very unfortunate incident.”
Trump rages against Minnesota's Ilhan Omar again
Tuesday 27 January 2026 23:29 , Rachel DobkinPresident Donald Trump has raged against Representative Ilhan Omar, a Somali-American and Minnesota Democrat, again during his speech in Iowa Tuesday.
“Nobody is able to come into our country, except for those that come in legally,” Trump said. “We need people to come in legally, but they have to show that they can love our country, not hate our country.”
Federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota has grown intensely as Trump singles out the Somali immigrant population in the state.
Minnesota saw a massive federal fraud scandal in which hundreds of millions of dollars were allegedly stolen from welfare programs. Somali Americans made up most of the defendants charged so far in the schemes.
Trump said immigrants “have to be proud, not like Ilhan Omar” to enter the country.
The president has previously called Omar “garbage,” and said that “her friends are garbage.”
Two federal agents fired during Alex Pretti shooting: report
Tuesday 27 January 2026 23:14 , Rachel DobkinTwo federal agents had fired shots during a confrontation that ended with the killing of 37-year-old U.S. citizen Alex Pretti in Minneapolis over the weekend, according to the Associated Press.
The information was shared by a Customs and Border Protection official to Congress in a notice obtained by the AP on Tuesday.
Pretti resisted as agents tried to take him into custody, according to the notice. One Border Patrol officer said, “He’s got a gun!” multiple times during the confrontation, the notice said.
According to footage of the shooting shared by media outlets, Pretti’s gun appeared to be in his waistband during the confrontation.
Trump rails against 'group of morons' in Biden administration for immigration policies
Tuesday 27 January 2026 22:55 , Rachel DobkinPresident Donald Trump has railed against the “group of morons” in the Biden administration for its “open border” immigration policies.
“It's a lot of work taking criminals,” Trump said of his massive deportation efforts. “We got to get them out...We can never forget what that group of morons did to this country...That's why we've got to win the midterms. “
Trump claims ousted federal employees 'love' him after getting paid more in private sector
Tuesday 27 January 2026 22:43 , Rachel DobkinPresident Donald Trump has claimed that the federal employees whose jobs his administration cut early on in his second term “love” him after getting paid more in the private sector.
“I've cut hundreds of thousands of federal jobs,” Trump said. “They hated me. They hated me. Now they love me. You know why? They all got jobs in the private sector, making twice as much money as they made from the federal government.”
Trump says economic growth is 'exploding'
Tuesday 27 January 2026 22:34 , Rachel DobkinPresident Donald Trump has said that economic growth in America is “exploding.”
Inflation held steady in December at 2.7 percent, but grocery prices have remained high.
Read more about the latest inflation data:
Trump begins speech in Iowa
Tuesday 27 January 2026 22:30 , Rachel DobkinPresident Donald Trump has begun his speech in Des Moines, Iowa, to tout his perceived economic achievements.
Trump began his remarks by boasting about his victories in Iowa. The president won the state in the 2016, 2020 and 2024 presidential elections.
Trump said, “Should we do it a fourth time?” The president has been known to float the possibility of running for president again, despite being term-limited.
LIVE: Trump speaks in Iowa after backing Kristi Noem amid Minnesota shootings
Tuesday 27 January 2026 22:22 , Rachel DobkinImmigration officials will testify to House Homeland Security Committee
Tuesday 27 January 2026 22:20 , Ariana BaioTop officials from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, as well as Citizenship and Immigration Services, will testify to the House Homeland Security committee on February 10, Republican Rep. Andrew Garbarino announced.
“Transparency and communication are needed to turn the temperature down,” Garbarino said.
Minneapolis mayor to answer questions on CNN town hall this week
Tuesday 27 January 2026 22:00 , Ariana BaioMinneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey will be featured on a CNN town hall Wednesday where he will discuss the ongoing immigration operation and take questions about possible pathways forward, the network said.
The event, called “State of Emergency: Confronting the Crisis in Minnesota,” will go live Wednesday, January 28, at 8 p.m. ET.
CNN anchors Anderson Cooper and Sara Sidner will moderate the town hall.
Trump’s DOJ accused of ‘extorting’ Minnesota for voter data: ‘It’s a shakedown’
Tuesday 27 January 2026 21:45 , Alex WoodwardHours after federal agents fatally shot Alex Pretti, Attorney General Pam Bondi suggested that the Trump administration could withdraw officers from Minnesota - if officials there agreed to hand over reams of voter data.
In her letter to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Bondi suggested he could “restore the rule of law” by complying with a list of demands, including turning over sensitive voter registration information to the Department of Justice.
Read more here:
Trump’s DOJ accused of ‘extorting’ Minnesota for voter data: ‘It’s a shakedown’
