Minneapolis backlash grows after federal shooting probes (Full Transcript)

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: U.S. Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino will withdraw from Minneapolis soon, along with about 800 of his troops, that according to our U.S. news partners, CBS. Mr. Bovino has been widely criticized over his response to the fatal shooting of an intensive care nurse amid a growing backlash against the surge of federal agents in the city. On Monday, residents protested against federal immigration and customs forces for a third consecutive day. Now, earlier, the White House confirmed three separate probes into the killing of 37-year-old Alex Preti, who was shot dead by federal agents on Saturday in Minneapolis. Investigators are reportedly reviewing body camera footage from the incident. U.S. Border Sgt. Tom Homan, traveling to Minneapolis this evening, expected to meet with the city's mayor. And earlier, White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt blamed Democrats for fueling civil unrest that she claimed led to the shooting. Our correspondent, Tom Bateman, starts us off tonight with this report from Minneapolis.

[00:01:01] Speaker 2: PROTESTERS SHOUTING Protesters have vowed to stay on the streets until federal immigration agents leave. This is a standoff, a Democrat-run state in a battle of endurance with the Trump administration forged amid the tragedy of a second American killed in three weeks in Minneapolis.

[00:01:21] Speaker 1: We're here for each other. We're trying to keep our community members safe.

[00:01:27] Speaker 3: It's just devastating.

[00:01:31] Speaker 2: What do you want the president, the administration to do now?

[00:01:35] Speaker 3: To leave us alone.

[00:01:38] Speaker 2: After the shooting of Alex Preti, the administration blamed city and state leaders for incitement, as it did after Rene Good was killed. But even some of Mr. Trump's base seemed concerned at the rhetoric. The pictures of what happened here have shocked Americans, I think it's fair to say, of all political stripes. And there is a sense that that is being heard at the White House and the first signs of a shifting tone by the administration. After weeks of angry exchanges, Mr. Trump said he had now spoken to the Democrat governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz. Both Governor Walz and I want to make it better, he said. The White House is sticking to its line that hostile resistance by Democrat leaders is causing the tensions, but is sounding more conciliatory.

[00:02:25] Speaker 3: Nobody in the White House, including President Trump, wants to see people getting hurt or killed in America's streets. This includes Rene Good, Alex Preti, the brave men and women of federal law enforcement, and the many Americans who have been victimized at the hands of illegal alien criminals.

[00:02:44] Speaker 2: Meanwhile, some senior Republicans appear ready to question the policies.

[00:02:49] Speaker 4: President Trump closed the border, promised to get violent criminals out of our country, and I think everybody agrees with that. But now Americans are asking themselves, what is the end game?

[00:03:00] Speaker 2: So what sparked the mounting controversy over ICE, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency? It plays a key role in removing undocumented immigrants from the US and has been routinely used by both Republican and Democrat administrations. Mr Trump boosted ICE numbers and sent agents to these areas, often deemed sanctuary cities, Democrat-run, which in some cases limit assistance to federal immigration authorities. The high-profile drives, often involving masked agents in tactical gear, have sparked protests and arrests. After the deaths of protesters, many will hope now marks a turning point in the clash between states and the administration. The White House is signaling a change of message, but so far its policy and its agents remain. Tom Bateman, BBC News, Minneapolis.

[00:03:54] Speaker 1: Now we do have some breaking news to bring you on this story that's just coming across the desk. According to US media, Gregory Bovino has been removed from his role as the commander-at-large for the US Border Patrol and will return to his former job in California, where he's expected to retire soon. The Atlantic has reported those details on Monday, citing a Homeland Security official and two people with knowledge of the change. Let's go live now to our next guest. I'm very pleased to welcome Minnesota Republican State Representative Mike Weiner. Representative, it's good to speak with you again. First of all, I'd just like to get your reaction to this latest news about the departure of Greg Bovino.

[00:04:38] Speaker 5: Well, thanks for having me on. Thanks for the opportunity to speak tonight. I hadn't heard that news. That's interesting. I was very excited, I guess, when I had heard that Governor Walz and President Trump had communicated. And this is something I've been asking for for some time, is that communication, that dialogue. Nobody wanted to see the violence in this state. Nobody wanted to see the protests. And that communication, I think, is going to go a long ways to calming the waters. And let's get back to life as normal here in Minnesota. And hopefully, this is that first step.

[00:05:12] Speaker 1: Now, I hadn't heard that news just either. And we should say that BBC has not independently verified it, but it's being widely reported across US media. We'll, of course, be doing our best to confirm that ourselves. But based on that news coming in, what do you think it suggests about the way President Trump is thinking about what's happening in Minnesota? Do you think there's some degree of dissatisfaction with the way things have been handled?

[00:05:39] Speaker 5: Well, I think anytime there are people, citizens in our state or our country who are in these situations where we've got the tragic loss of life, I don't think anybody wants to see that continue. And if that outreaching, and I'm not sure who initiated the phone call, if it was Governor Walz or Trump, but I think, like I said, that this is that first step. And I think that's very positive. So it gives me hope. And the other thing that really we should be looking at is calming those waters. And now, hopefully, some of the protests and some of the people can go back to life as normal.

[00:06:17] Speaker 1: Now, you and I spoke a couple of days ago shortly after this happened. And I just wanted to come back to you on your call to calm the waters, which is something we've been hearing a lot of from both sides. We've now had other Republicans suggesting similar, Representative James Comer, for example, suggesting that if Minneapolis doesn't want ICE there, if it's going to put the lives of federal agents at risk, then perhaps I should just move on to other areas where it is welcomed by state leaders. And Trump actually praised the interview in which he made those comments. Do you see that as potentially an option for Minnesota?

[00:06:56] Speaker 5: Well, those decisions are made far above my pay grade. But, you know, the situation here, we had for quite some time in our state, a lot of violence. Carjackings were just astronomical. It was through the roof. We don't want criminals on our street. We don't want bad actors. We don't want rapists, murderers. And if the way to get them off the street was to work through ICE, that's what we really wanted the governor to do, was simply worked with ICE to get the bad individuals out of our state. And, you know, for ICE to do what they did in order to take those criminals out, I think was probably a good thing. But at the same time, when the tensions got so escalated and something has to change. And what we're seeing now is hopefully that steps to that, like I said, calming the waters.

[00:07:49] Speaker 1: So a call for stronger law enforcement and also for these waters to be calmed. I also want to ask you about the way the federal government reacted to something that is happening so close to home to you in Minnesota. Their suggestion that Mr. Preti was shot, perhaps because he carried a gun. People who carry guns are at risk of being lawfully shot. We've had some gun advocacy groups criticizing this. The NRA said that this suggestion was dangerous and wrong. Do you share those concerns?

[00:08:24] Speaker 5: I think all too often when we have these situations, these tragic incidents, people are quick to make decisions to play Monday morning quarterback and sort of way. But we see information that comes out after the fact, which really can change the perception of what's going on here. So there again, I think that comes down to leadership when we have these bad situations take place, is for them to come out and publicly put things at ease a little bit instead of inflaming tensions, which I think happened way too quickly in these situations. There should have been a call for calm. And unfortunately, that wasn't done.