Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania made a personal plea to President Trump to fire Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
“I make a direct appeal to immediately fire @Sec_Noem,” Fetterman wrote on social media, tagging the president.
“Americans have died. She is betraying DHS’s core mission and trashing your border security legacy,” he added.
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Fetterman who often acts as an independent voice in the Senate, was one of a few Senate Democrats who voted to confirm Noem as DHS secretary early last year.
But now, he believes Noem has proven “inept and absolutely incompetent” given her handling of Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota, which he ripped as a “dangerous” and unredeemable fiasco, in an interview with Axios. Fetterman is hoping that his willingness to break from his party will give him more credibility with Trump.
Notably, Fetterman’s wife, Gisele, was once an illegal immigrant and has forcefully denounced the operation in Minnesota.
The Keystone State senator has said that, unlike other Democratic senators, he will not force a government shutdown over funding disputes involving the Department of Homeland Security. Congress has a deadline of 12:01 a.m. ET Saturday government shutdown deadline.
More than half of all Democrats in the House of Representatives have signed on to a resolution from Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) to impeach Noem.
The top three House Democrats, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), both publicly demanded that Noem get impeached.
“The violence unleashed on the American people by the Department of Homeland Security must end forthwith,” the three House Democratic leaders said in a statement. “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.”
But any impeachment effort is unlikely to advance given Republican control of the chamber.
The White House has defended Noem, who reportedly met with Trump for two hours in the Oval Office on Monday evening along with Corey Lewdowski, her top aide at DHS.
The secretary “still has the utmost confidence and trust of the president,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in her briefing on Monday.
“I think she’s doing a very good job,” Trump told reporters Tuesday, rejecting calls to fire Noem.
But questions are growing about Noem’s handling of the fallout after two people were killed in altercations with federal agents. She sought to portray Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old armed ICU nurse, and Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother, as domestic terrorists.
The White House had distanced itself from that rhetoric, calling for an end to the violence while making it clear it expects local authorities to aid federal efforts in rounding up illegal immigrants.
Trump, in a move that was interpreted as sidelining Noem, announced Monday that he was sending border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota to handle the situation on the ground. Additionally, Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, an aggressive, hard-charging leader, was ordered home from his position in the state.
Republicans also have been questioning the aggressive actions of ICE agents in Minnesota.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said the agents involved should be placed on administrative leave.
“Local police routinely put officers involved in deadly shootings on administrative leave until an independent investigation is concluded. That should happen immediately,” he said Tuesday.
