POLITICS: Trump admin troubled by internal doubts – USSA News

The Trump administration’s swift and forceful response to the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good, a Minnesota woman, by an ICE officer has triggered unease within its ranks.

While senior officials moved quickly to frame the incident as an act of “domestic terrorism,” some allies and immigration enforcement veterans have privately warned that the rhetoric risks damaging public trust.

The concern deepened after a second federal shooting in Minneapolis reignited scrutiny of how such cases are being handled.

Terrorism claim raises alarm

At the center of the unease is Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s decision to publicly describe Good’s actions as “domestic terrorism” during remarks in Brownsville, Texas, insisting Good attempted to ram officers with her vehicle.

The White House deputy chief of staff echoed that assessment within hours.

Several people close to the Trump administration said the certainty and speed of those declarations risk undermining the credibility of the investigation before it has concluded.

Even some supporters of President Donald Trump questioned the speed and certainty of those claims.

“Do I think it’s domestic terrorism? Yeah, I do,” said a person close to the White House. “But it might not have been wise to say that at the outset, how [Noem] said it.”

Second shooting fuels national tensions

Within 48 hours, a separate shooting by a Customs and Border Protection officer in Portland, Oregon, further inflamed tensions.

DHS said agents were attempting to stop an unauthorized immigrant from Venezuela linked to the Tren de Aragua gang.

Portland police confirmed that a man and a woman were hospitalized with gunshot wounds.

An initial FBI post calling it an officer-involved shooting was later deleted and reframed as an “assault on federal officers,” drawing criticism from Democrats who saw a pattern of premature conclusions.

Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth accused the Trump administration of closing ranks before investigations were complete.

“This pattern of ‘shoot first, then lie, lie, deny’ has to stop,” she said. “The videos don’t lie.”

Internal worries over credibility

Current and former ICE officials say the administration’s posture risks widening the credibility gap between the public and federal immigration agencies.

“I don’t know how we recover from this,” one administration official said.

John Sandweg, who led ICE from 2013 to 2014 under the Obama administration, warned that early conclusions undermine confidence in any eventual findings.

“Whatever outcome this investigation produces, I don’t see how anyone’s gonna believe it when the secretary already is firmly — and doubled down on — a conclusion without knowing all the facts,” he said.

Trump admin aggressively defends federal agents

Yet the White House has doubled down on Noem’s claims about Good’s death.

Vice President J.D. Vance shared video footage he said shows the ICE officer’s “life was endangered and he fired in self defense.”

DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said, “If you weaponize a vehicle, a deadly weapon to kill or cause bodily harm to a federal law enforcement officer, that is an act of domestic terrorism and will be prosecuted as such.”

Vance went even further, claiming without evidence that Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was influenced by a leftist network.

“What you see is what you get in this case,” he said.

President Trump echoed that message, vowing continued support for federal agents.

Yet, some inside immigration enforcement worry that the aggressive defense of officers, before investigations conclude, could place agents in greater danger.

“You’re not doing the agency or the agents any justice when you rush out and reflexively defend them,” Sandweg said.

“The aggression is being rewarded, and I think sometimes you’re better off to just stop and think a little bit,” he added.