'Easy Way or the Hard Way': Democratic Leaders Escalate Noem Impeachment Push

President Donald Trump offered a one-word answer—"No"—when asked Tuesday if Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem will resign following her decision to smear Alex Pretti as a violent domestic terrorist immediately after he was gunned down by border security agents on a Minneapolis street, but Democrats in Congress noted that many in the Republican Party have not appeared so confident regarding Noem's conduct following the killing.

Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee emphasized that since "Operation Metro Surge" in the Minneapolis area led to the killing of a second US citizen by Border Patrol agents on Saturday, and Noem accused Pretti of approaching officers with a gun and resorting to violence despite the fact that footage from multiple camera angles showed nothing of the sort, "she has been rebuked by Republicans in Congress, by her own senior staffers, and even the president."

Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) said Noem's comments "came before all the facts were known and weakened confidence," while Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) called for Noem and the heads of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other immigration agencies to testify before Congress.

Former DHS general counsel John Mitnick, an architect of the agency, said he was "enraged and embarrassed by DHS’s lawlessness, fascism, and cruelty" and demanded Trump's impeachment, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt attempted on Monday to distance the administration from Noem's response to the killing.

The Democrats on the Homeland Security Committee posted MS NOW's fact-check of Noem's comments directly after Pretti was killed, along with their demand: "She lied about Alex Pretti... She needs to be fired, resign, or she will be impeached."

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) released a statement outlining why—regardless of how—Noem must leave her position leading DHS.

"Taxpayer dollars are being weaponized by the Trump administration to kill American citizens, brutalize communities, and violently target law-abiding immigrants," said the Democratic leaders. "Dramatic changes at the Department of Homeland Security are needed. Federal agents who have broken the law must be criminally prosecuted. The paramilitary tactics must cease and desist. Taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for Americans, not kill them in cold blood."

"Kristi Noem should be fired immediately, or we will commence impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives," they added. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

On MS NOW, Jeffries on Tuesday called Noem "a despicable, corrupt, pathological liar."

The GOP-controlled House is not likely to move forward with impeaching Noem, but a resolution to do so now has 150 Democratic cosponsors, with more than two-thirds of the party's House members backing the call to bring charges against the homeland security secretary and former South Dakota governor. Should Democrats win back control of the House in the November elections, they could move forward with the effort if she is still in office.

"Secretary Noem has blood on her hands," Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) who introduced the impeachment articles, said in a statement. "Under her leadership, Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good were murdered."