Former White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham called on Donald Trump to pull ICE from Minnesota following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti.
Grisham, who served as press secretary for nine months during Trump’s first term, sent a message to the president in an X post. She begged him to “stop this,” referring to an image of Pretti, 37, being pushed to the ground by a Border Patrol agent pointing a gun at his head.
“Please @POTUS - stop this,” Grisham, 49, said. “Don’t double down, don’t listen to the advisors telling you false facts/stats & fake polling & lies about what is going on. Please use your humanity & pull ICE from MN - that’s not being weak, it’s leadership.”
Grisham adds to the chorus of critics across the aisle who have condemned the killing of Pretti by Border Patrol agents. Former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama accused the Trump administration of being “eager to escalate” tensions. Meanwhile, ex-MAGA acolyte and former representative Marjorie Taylor Greene also lambasted federal officials’ excuse for shooting Pretti, implying it was an attack on constitutional rights.
Grisham, who endorsed the 2024 Democratic ticket, defected from Trump’s camp after witnessing his behavior “when the cameras were off.” She has been openly critical of her former boss in recent years, most recently saying the president is “mentally slipping.”
The Trump administration has been holding the line against backlash, putting on a united front as various agency heads continue to brand Pretti a “domestic terrorist” and potential “assassin.” Without acknowledging the loss of life, Trump called Pretti a “gunman” in a Truth Social post on Saturday and suggested that the incident was a “cover up” for state corruption in Minnesota.
Despite federal officials claiming that the slain VA nurse “wanted to do maximum damage,” video footage of the incident contradicts the government’s story that Pretti was an active threat. A physician who offered sworn testimony said that Pretti had gotten into a verbal confrontation with officers but did not appear to brandish a weapon. The witness also said that Pretti appeared to have been shot multiple times in the back, chest, and possibly the neck.
State and local officials are conducting an investigation into the shooting. However, they have faced resistance from Border Patrol, ICE, and DHS, leading a federal judge to grant a temporary restraining order blocking these agencies from “destroying or altering” evidence.
The DHS was accused of blocking local police and the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension from surveying the scene. The agency denied messing with evidence from the shooting.
The White House did not immediately return a request for comment on Sunday.
