KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The fallout from the shooting death of 37-year-old Alex Pretti on Saturday in the streets of Minneapolis by the gun of a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent continued to reverberate across the country on Monday.
U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) posted a statement Monday afternoon on social media, saying that he was "deeply troubled by the shootings in Minneapolis involving federal agents."
"We have a right to free speech, to peacefully assemble and to bear arms," Moran wrote, while also adding that "enforcing immigration laws" makes the country safer. "Law enforcement must reflect our nation's values, and citizens should obey the law. This tragic circumstance should be investigated to the fullest extent to ensure transparency and accountability."
U.S. Sens. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) and Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) had not yet posted their thoughts to their Facebook pages as of Monday afternoon.
On Sunday, U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Missouri) used his Senate campaign Facebook page to call on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to “stop the war on law enforcement.”
“The crisis in Minnesota is a choice,” Schmitt said. “These immigration operations are taking place in red states across the country — with none of the violence and unrest, but the left has decided escalating anarchy serves their political interests.”
U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II (D-Mo.-5) called for justice in a post on Saturday afternoon.
“My heart breaks for another family that must bear the horrific pain that comes with losing a loved one,” Cleaver said. “How many more Americans must die at the hands of federal agents before Republicans in Congress will put an end to the administration’s reckless, lawless, and dangerous immigration agenda?”
U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids (D-Kan.-3) called on local law enforcement to be allowed to protect local neighborhoods, “not masked, militarized federal agents operating with zero transparency.”
“One killing is too many, but after two fatal shootings in recent weeks, this administration must answer for what happened and take immediate, concrete action to stop the senseless killing of our neighbors,” Davids said on Facebook.
The area’s two other elected federal officials, Rep. Mark Alford (R-Mo.-4) and Rep. Derek Schmidt (R-Kan.-2), have not posted anything about the shooting on their official Facebook pages.
Three days before Saturday's deadly shooting, mayors from dozens of cities across the United States filed an amicus brief challenging the constitutionality of the Trump administration’s deployment of federal agents to the Twin Cities.
Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas was among those who co-signed the brief.
“How many people must die? How many rights must be ignored?" Lucas wrote Saturday afternoon on Facebook. "How much cowardice must persist before our leaders bring an end to the reckless federal assault on Minneapolis and America’s cities? [Saturday]’s action is a stain on our Constitution, our freedoms and our humanity.”
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