C-SPAN’s Washington Journal Open Forum dissects the Alex Preddy shooting, where federal agents killed him in Minneapolis amid claims of $20B welfare fraud fueling protests, while President Trump deploys ICE’s Tom Homan—despite his regional inexperience—and delays defending the agent. Callers debate ICE training (56 days vs. 8 weeks), Trump’s economic legacy (Moody’s praises Biden’s economy), and Omar’s DOJ scrutiny over her $44M net worth. Reporter Julia Manchester notes conflicting DHS claims, bipartisan ICE backlash, and shutdown funding delays, framing the crisis as a clash between law enforcement optics and political accountability amid Minnesota’s dual tragedies and nationwide winter chaos. [Automatically generated summary]
Debate sponsored by the University of Chicago Institute of Politics.
You can watch that debate, part of C-SPAN's campaign 2026 coverage, at 7 p.m. Eastern on C-SPAN, C-SPAN now, our free mobile video app, and online at C-SPAN.org.
Have a great day.
unidentified
Well, coming up shortly, White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt is scheduled to answer reporters' questions on last weekend's fatal shooting of U.S. citizen Alex Preddy by federal agents in Minneapolis.
President Trump announced this morning that he's sending border czar Tom Holman to Minneapolis to manage ICE operations there.
The president also posted on his truth social account that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called him, requesting they work together in respect to Minnesota.
While we wait for the briefing to get underway, we'll show you some of today's Washington Journal program.
That was the response from the Department of Homeland Security.
Yes, go ahead.
unidentified
Okay, all right.
They're response saying it's not been cut from six months to 47 days.
But if you multiply seven times eight weeks, that's 56 and you subtract Saturday and Sunday.
That's 47 days of training, unless they're training for the whole 56 days, including Saturday and Sunday.
But the one question I wanted to ask, everyone always talked about the popularity of the Democrats and how it's going to affect the election.
But I just wanted to ask your last guest, what is the popularity of the Republicans?
Because I really never hear that mention as much.
And how will it affect Democrats and red states the opportunity to win some of those seats?
Because we know on these off and off elections that's been going on in the last two or three months, Democrats have been taking up house seats in red, well, state seats in red districts and flipping them.
So houses are going up.
Of course, whenever you get another guest, the popularity of the Republicans and the popularity of the Democrats, and where the Democrats continue to flip seats, not only in state houses, but also Congressman where it says specifically.
I'm calling about, I was an Air Force Security Police canine handler from 68 to 74.
And I went through eight weeks of basic training, and then I went through 10 weeks of security police school before I was even able to carry a gun or have a shield.
And even then, I had to wait for my security clearances.
And then I went through 10 more weeks of canine school.
For these guys to go out there with eight weeks of training and get the right to actually not just apprehend but arrest civilians and get a police, a federal police shield and a gun, and then be totally protected with immunity is just bizarre.
It's out of this world.
I don't know how they get away with it, and they're certainly undertrained.
Next up is Yvonne in Florida on our line for Republicans.
Good morning, Yvonne.
unidentified
Good morning.
I, God, I've been listening to these callers for like the last couple of months, actually.
And I really do not understand the mind of the Democrat.
It is just mind-blowing what comes out of their mouth.
I was raised old school.
My mother and my father raised me to respect authority.
And when you are in the front or the face of police or anybody else of authority, you respect them and you do what you're told.
If you have a grievance, you take it up on a later day.
You do not confront the police.
You do not confront ICE.
You do not, I mean, Democrats are on the wrong side of everything.
They want to defund the police.
Now they want to abolish ICE, everything they don't like.
Instead of them going lawfully and handling business, what do they do?
Tear down cities, burn down cities, pillage their own neighborhoods, go out and protest.
And there is nothing peaceful about their protests.
Anybody with eyes can see that.
They never take accountability for anything.
They claim they're not above the law, but they act like it.
They don't respect the law.
And to go there with all this, I grew up in California.
We know about illegal aliens.
They've been around my whole life.
And at the end of the day, so has Border Patrol.
Nobody went against Obama's orders to deport.
Nobody went against Bill Clinton's orders to deport.
The hatred that these people have for Trump is ungodly.
You people vote against a man, not policies.
You don't pay attention to policies.
You vote against a man.
And I have one more thing to say.
There was a young lady who called several months ago, and she was speaking about how we don't need to curse of right because we have the computer.
That was the most ignorant statement I ever heard in my life.
Have you seen how they change things on the computer?
They can change anything on the computer.
You cannot change the Constitution.
So when children don't know how to curse of right, which, by the way, they're not teaching in elementary schools anymore, they don't know their rights.
They don't know the Constitution.
Look at the voting for socialists in America because they don't realize what socialism is really about.
Wake up, America.
Democrats, you guys need to get on the right side of the law.
I actually want to read a recent post from this morning.
President Donald Trump posted on his social media website, Truth Social, about the ongoing activities in Minnesota.
The president posted, I am sending Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight.
He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there.
Tom is tough but fair and will report directly to me.
Separately, a major investigation is going on with respect to the massive $20 billion-plus welfare fraud that has taken place in Minnesota and is at least partially responsible for the violent organized protests going on in the streets.
Additionally, the DOJ and Congress are looking at Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who left Somalia with nothing and is now reportedly worth more than $44 million.
Time will tell all.
Thank you for your attention to this matter, President DJT.
Let's hear now from Ron in Johnston, Pennsylvania, and our line for Democrats.
Good morning, John.
Ron.
unidentified
Yeah, good morning.
This is amazing.
The fella called before and says that Biden ran the country down to the ground.
According to Moody's Analytics and Mark Zandy, the Biden administration had the best economy in 35 years.
And talking about the criminal in the White House and fraud, this guy made over $1,400 million.
And no one seems to be worried about that.
I mean, as far as I goes, can you imagine if Biden would have said he's going to buy Greenland, get back the Panama Canal, go into Venezuela?
Everyone would call him dementia.
He has dementia.
But yet, when Trump does it, you know, there's no, I don't hear anyone saying about dementia.
This guy is a crook.
He's a definite, it's hard to believe that anyone could stick by this guy.
Thank you so much for hopping on on this still snowy day.
But of course, the topic of attention is still focused on Minnesota and the fatal shooting this weekend, this past weekend at the hands of federal agents.
The administration's defending that immigration crackdown.
I was just reading the President's Truth Social post about sending Tom Homan to Minnesota.
What else are you hearing from White House officials as these protests continue and the fallout continues?
Well, I thought it was notable in an interview with the Wall Street Journal last night that President Trump did not immediately come to the defense of the federal agent who shot Alex Predi on Saturday.
Instead, he said, we are looking at everything.
Now, this all comes as Christy Noam, the head of the Department of Homeland Security, said that Predi was brandishing a weapon, but from all angles of the footage, and there are multiple clips out there that we've seen, we do not see Predi at any point brandishing the weapon.
Instead, he seems to be filming or appears to be filming the situation that was unfolding between ICE office or federal agents and a protester or protesters in the area.
There are some reports of tension within the administration because of the optics of all of this.
We know that there are, you know, obviously growing concerns that now a second American citizen has died at the hands of the federal government in Minnesota.
So I think there's a lot of questions going forward, and the administration is treading carefully now that they're seeing really the backlash to all of this.
Now, at the end of last week, we thought we were on a pretty steady glide path to passing funding for the federal government to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of this month.
But now there are several Democrats who are threatening to hold up in the Senate the spending package over DHS funding as it pertains to ICE.
Can you talk a little bit about where that stands?
You know, we know that there are no votes scheduled in the Senate today, but the Senate is in session.
But there's a big question as to whether this will be held up and we could see another government shutdown due to the optics and what's happening in Minnesota, in Minneapolis regarding these federal agents and ICE.
And it's notable because you're not only seeing Democrats voice opposition, but you're also seeing Republicans increasingly starting to voice concerns and maybe even some backlash to what's happening in Minneapolis.
Senator Bill Cassidy, for example, someone who hasn't necessarily been shy to speak out against the administration, a Republican from Louisiana, he condemned the actions of the federal agents after that video surfaced on Saturday morning.
You also have House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer saying on Fox News or Fox Business yesterday that ICE should leave Minneapolis in an effort to de-escalate the situation following the death of a second American citizen.
So we're seeing more cracks, it seems, in the Republican coalition forming.