Donald Trump’s plan to rapidly expand ICE detention facilities is facing a backlash from within his own party following the deadly immigration crackdown in Minneapolis.
When Kristi Noem tried building a new illegal migrant camp in New Hampshire, she was rebuffed this week by the state’s Republican Governor Kelly Ayotte, according to Politico.
Residents of Merrimack erupted in outrage when Homeland Security’s plans to use the New Hampshire town to expand Trump’s mass deportation effort became public.
Ayotte, a moderate Republican governing a blue state, informed Noem that she would not assist in the construction of the facility.
Noem faced further pushback in Mississippi when the state’s senior Republican senator, Roger Wicker, successfully derailed her plans for a proposed site earlier in February.
‘It’s a huge problem,’ said a Trump administration official to Politico. ‘The mismanagement of Minneapolis lost us the narrative, and the dominos are falling as a result.’
The rift between the Trump administration and state Republicans comes amid mounting political fallout from the Minneapolis crackdown, where two Americans were fatally shot by immigration agents.
An ICE spokesperson attempted to downplay Noem’s failure to build new immigration detention facilities by claiming the secretary had a ‘great discussion’ with Ayottee last week. The spokesperson added that Noem plans to ‘carry out the largest deportation effort in American history“ and “keep Americans safe.’
The rift between the Trump administration and state Republicans comes amid mounting political fallout from the Minneapolis crackdown
Noem and other top White House officials denounced Americans fatally shot by immigration agents in Minneapolis
Some in the GOP are wary that voters could punish them at the polls if they appear too closely aligned with the White House on immigration
Republican hesitation to back Trump’s mass deportation agenda also comes as the midterm elections approach.
Republicans hold a slim majority in both the House and the Senate, with recent polling suggesting Democrats are poised to flip one or both chambers.
If the GOP suffers heavy losses in November, Trump would enter the final two years of his term as a lame-duck president.
Some in the GOP are wary that voters could punish them at the polls if they appear too closely aligned with the White House on immigration.
Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse, and Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother, were killed by Border Patrol and ICE agents in January.
Noem and other top White House officials, including Stephen Miller, labeled the dead Americans ‘domestic terrorists.’
The President, however, was displeased with the wave of negative press the White House faced following Pretti’s death.
Trump then tapped Noem’s chief rival, border czar Tom Homan, to take control of the Minneapolis crackdown.
Ayotte, a moderate Republican governing a blue state, informed Noem that she would not assist in the construction of a immigration detention facility
After brokering a deal with local and state leaders, Homan initiated a drawdown of immigration enforcement operations in the Twin Cities earlier this month.
Trump returned to the White House claiming a clear electoral mandate from voters after campaigning heavily on a promise of mass deportations.
