CNN host Jake Tappers effort to chastise Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem over her defense of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer involved in a fatal Minneapolis shooting quickly turned against him.
The controversy stems from a chaotic confrontation last Wednesday, when an ICE agent fatally shot a rioter who allegedly tried to run over officers with a vehicle in Minneapolis, according to The Gateway Pundit. Video posted to X captured the moment the woman was shot as she accelerated toward law enforcement, and additional footage appeared to show an ICE officer in immediate danger of being struck.
Noem, standing firmly with law enforcement rather than the mob, described the incident as an act of domestic terrorism. She further emphasized that the ICE agent acted properly, declaring, This is an experienced officer who followed his training, and we will continue to let the investigation unfold into the individual and continue to follow the procedures and policies that happen in these use of force cases, she stated.
During an appearance on CNNs State of the Union, Tapper pressed Noem, suggesting she was prematurely siding with the officer before the investigation had concluded. His attempt to frame her comments as irresponsible, however, immediately backfired as Noem highlighted his selective outrage.
Noem reminded Tapper that prominent Democrats had rushed to vilify the officer without evidence, yet faced no comparable scrutiny from CNN. She noted that he had remained conspicuously silent when figures like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey smeared ICE and inflamed tensions against federal agents.
TAPPER: Are you doing a disservice to the officer by reaching a conclusion before the investigation is complete? Tapper asked. NOEM: I havent heard you say once what a disservice its done for Jacob Frey to get up and tell ICE to get the f out of the city Noem shot back, refusing to let the double standard go unchallenged.
When Tapper tried to interjectTAPPER: Im going to and TAPPER: I justNoem pressed harder, pointing to Ocasio-Cortezs inflammatory rhetoric. NOEM: Or AOC to stand up before she had any of the facts and call this officer a murderer, she said, before demanding equal accountability: NOEM: Call them out, Jake. Spend as much time calling them out.
Noem ended the exchange by underscoring that her statements were grounded in the available evidence and the ongoing investigative process, not in partisan theatrics. I have provided you with facts and information backing up what weve said and this investigation. If you dont like it, thats fine, she concluded, drawing a sharp contrast between her support for law enforcement and the lefts rush to demonize those who risk their lives to uphold the law.
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