The White House under Donald Trump’s administration has announced an impromptu press conference scheduled for today.
A press briefing with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has been added to the updated Daily Schedule. While the specific topic of discussion remains unconfirmed, the press conference comes amid escalating outrage following the tragic shooting of an unarmed woman by an ICE agent in Minnesota.
Since early morning, a large crowd of protesters has congregated outside an immigration enforcement center in St. Paul, Minnesota, in response to the shooting of Renee Nicole Good, a mother of three, by an ICE agent as she tried to drive away.
The press conference is set to occur at 1 pm in Washington, D.C., corresponding to 6 pm UK time.
In a post on Truth Social following the incident, Trump falsely claimed that video evidence showed the driver intentionally running over the ICE agent, who he alleged was injured. Contrary to Trump’s assertions, there is no evidence supporting these claims.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, after viewing the video of the incident, denounced what he called a “propaganda machine” and rebuked federal involvement, particularly addressing Trump and Kristi Noem.
Walz criticized the chaos surrounding the incident, questioning the premature conclusions drawn by federal officials before a proper investigation had taken place.
Video footage of the event depicts an officer positioned near the SUV as another officer attempts to open the door. Subsequently, the driver steers away from the officers, prompting the officer to fire several shots at close range. No other officers were in the vehicle’s path when it accelerated towards parked cars, ultimately crashing, while the shooter emerged unscathed.
Within an hour of the incident, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem labeled the event as an “act of domestic terrorism,” a claim disputed by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who criticized the justification of self-defense offered by the Department for Homeland Security.
Frey denounced the use of excessive force by the ICE agent, emphasizing that the incident resulted from an abuse of power rather than a legitimate act of self-defense.