Top House Democrats Endorse Impeachment of Kristi Noem If Trump Keeps Homeland Security Secretary at Her Post

The top three Democrats in the House now say they are prepared to launch what is sure to be an ill-fated impeachment effort against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem following the shooting death of Minnesota nurse Alex Pretti on Saturday. President Trump says he does not plan to relieve her of her duties. Articles of impeachment against Ms. Noem were introduced by Congresswoman Robin Kelly earlier this month after the shooting death of Renee Good, who, like Pretti, was killed by DHS agents at Minneapolis. The three articles introduced by Ms. Kelly accuse Ms. Noem of obstruction of Congress, violation of the public trust, and self-dealing. Ms. Kelly says Ms. Noem is obstructing members of Congress from accessing ICE detention facilities despite federal law giving lawmakers the ability to visit at any time they see fit. The violation of public trust accusation stems from agents’ use of what Ms. Kelly calls excessive force, as well as agents’ use of administrative — rather than judicial — warrants to conduct searches. The final accusation — that Ms. Noem is “self-dealing” — stems from the fact that a firm called Strategy Group received a $200 million contract from DHS. That firm was founded by the husband of one of Ms. Noem’s top aides, Tricia McLaughlin. “She bypassed the normal competitive bidding process,” Ms. Kelly said in a statement. In the wake of Pretti’s death, dozens of House Democrats co-sponsored Ms. Kelly’s effort to oust Ms. Noem. As of Tuesday, about two-thirds of the caucus has backed the impeachment push. The caucus’s three leaders — the minority leader, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, the minority whip, Congresswoman Katherine Clark, and the caucus chairman, Congressman Pete Aguilar — said in a joint statement Tuesday that they are supporting the articles of impeachment if Mr. Trump does not fire Ms. Noem. “Dramatic changes at the Department of Homeland Security are needed. Federal agents who have broken the law must be criminally prosecuted,” the House leaders wrote, demanding reforms at DHS ahead of the Friday funding deadline for the department. “The paramilitary tactics must cease and desist. Taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for everyday 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 Monday, Ms. Noem and her top advisor Corey Lewandowski reportedly met with the president for nearly two hours, according to the New York Times. Ms. Noem was the one who requested the meeting, according to the Times. Two Democratic lawmakers who voted to confirm Ms. Noem for the DHS leadership post last year, Senators Andy Kim and John Fetterman, also have said she needs to be fired. Mr. Trump, however, says he has no plans to remove Ms. Noem. On Monday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt tried to put some distance between the president and top aides who accused Pretti of being a terrorist seeking to harm federal agents. When asked if Mr. Trump agreed with those assessments, Ms. Leavitt simply said that he had not used those characterizations privately and that he wants to see the full investigation play out. As he was leaving the White House Tuesday to travel to Iowa, Mr. Trump was asked by a reporter if he would fire Ms. Noem. He responded curtly, simply saying, “No.” The president was also asked if he personally agreed with deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller’s claim that Pretti was attempting to assassinate federal agents on Friday before he was killed. “No, I don’t think so,” Mr. Trump said. Some Republicans on Capitol Hill, too, have been raising concerns about how DHS agents are acting. On Tuesday, the House Homeland Security Committee announced that the heads of ICE, Customs and Border Protection, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services would testify for an oversight hearing on February 10. Ms. Noem is expected to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee in March. The chairman of the Senate’s Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, Senator Rand Paul, sent a pointed letter to DHS officials on Monday, calling on them to testify before his panel, as well. Dr. Paul says leadership must answer questions about their responsibility to protect the public. “Congress has an obligation to conduct oversight of those tax dollars and ensure the funding is used to accomplish the mission, provide proper support for our law enforcement, and, most importantly, protect the American people,” Dr. Paul wrote in his letters on Monday.

Top House Democrats Endorse Impeachment of Kristi Noem If Trump Keeps Homeland Security Secretary at Her Post

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