How legacy media fell for Trump’s fake 'pivot' in Minnesota

After ICU nurse Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal officers at point-blank range, legacy media outlets reported that President Trump made significant changes to his immigration crackdown in Minnesota.

The Associated Press reported that Trump “shifted toward a more conciliatory approach,” describing Trump’s new policy as an “about face.” A New York Times headline declared: “Trump Changes Course in Minnesota.” According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump was “convinced“ to “change course” after “Republican lawmakers and other allies raised concerns that he was squandering public support for his signature campaign issue.” Axios took readers “[i]nside Trump’s pivot on Minnesota.”

But what, exactly, has changed about Trump’s policy in Minnesota?

The immigration crackdown in the Minneapolis area will continue indefinitely. Trump has made no announcement to end — or even suspend — the operation.

Nor will any of the leaders who have been overseeing the operation that resulted in the death of Pretti and another U.S. citizen, Renee Good, be held accountable.

Trump confirmed on Tuesday that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who smeared Pretti after his death, will keep her job. Noem falsely claimed that Pretti “approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun” and falsely accused him of “brandishing” the weapon. According to Noem, Pretti sought “to inflict maximum damage on individuals and kill law enforcement.”

Pretti had a license to carry a gun, but never used it to threaten federal officers. Pretti was unarmed at the time of the shooting because one of the officers had already taken his gun. All of Noem’s claims were directly contradicted by video evidence.

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, who publicly called Pretti an “assassin” and “domestic terrorist,” also remains on the job, playing a key role in directing Trump’s immigration policy. The Trump administration has declined to contradict Miller’s false attacks.

Trump himself has refused to concede that the fatal shooting of Pretti was unjustified. “[Y]ou can’t have guns. You can’t walk in with guns. You just can’t. You can’t walk in with guns. You can’t do that,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday. Trump previously referred to Pretti as a “gunman.”

So what is motivating all of the reporting on Trump’s “pivot?” Trump softened his rhetoric, calling Pretti’s death “very unfortunate” and “very sad.” He also replaced Greg Bovino, a Border Patrol commander overseeing the Minneapolis operation, with Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar.

Homan, however, is not a force for moderation. He is one of the chief architects of Trump’s mass deportation campaign and has vocally defended the administration’s tactics in Minnesota and elsewhere.

New Minneapolis boss is an immigration hardliner

Tom Homan has been a staunch defender of the administration’s draconian immigration policies during Trump’s second term. Although Homan has a more bipartisan professional history, this is not reflected in his current views.

In December, Homan expressed complete support for the administration’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota. “I agree with 100 percent [of] what [Trump is] doing,” Homan said. He also defended ICE’s aggressive tactics. “I trust the men and women of ICE and border patrol do the right thing,” he said.

In news coverage, Homan’s role is portrayed as a sign that ICE would refocus its activities on undocumented immigrants with criminal records. But in June, Homan pledged to “massively expand” the Trump administration’s workplace raids. “They’re coming here for a better life and a job, and I get that,” Homan told Semafor. “The more you remove those magnets, the less people are going to come. If they can’t get a job most of them aren’t going to come.”

In June, during ICE’s operation in Los Angeles, Homan said that he would “ask DOJ to prosecute” local officials who “impede law enforcement from doing their job.” Homan also supported the deployment of Marines to facilitate deportation raids.

In April, Homan backed the deportation of two children who were U.S. citizens with their noncitizen mothers. “Having a U.S. citizen child after you enter this country illegally is not a get-out-of-jail-free card,” Homan said. Other policies Homan has backed include the detention of migrants at Guantanamo Bay and the use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport immigrants without court proceedings.