Kristi Noem (00:00):
Good evening everyone. Thank you for being here. There are two different things that I'd like to discuss with you tonight. The first one being a storm that is barreling down on our country and will be impacting approximately 250 million Americans in 40 different states. We've been working together here at the FEMA headquarters and have opened our National Response Coordination Center and are working with local and state authorities to make sure that we're getting individuals and communities pre-deployed resources that they may need and also preparing them for the upcoming days, which will significantly impact them and their citizens. The Trump administration and FEMA are working closely with them to get them information, to get them resources, and to help them be prepared and well-equipped for the road ahead as we go through this next week. But before I take any questions and give more details on the storm and its impact, I do want to address the tragic situation that we saw in Minneapolis today that unfolded on the streets.
(00:57)
It occurred with DHS law enforcement as they carried out their lawful duties to keep Americans safe in the threat of criminal illegal aliens in this country. At 9:05 AM Central Time, the Department of Homeland Security Law Enforcement officials and officers were conducting targeted operations in Minneapolis against an illegal alien whose criminal history included domestic assault with intentionally inflicting bodily harm, disorderly conduct, and driving without a valid license. An individual approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a nine millimeter semi-automatic handgun. The officers attempted to disarm this individual, but the armed suspect reacted violently. Fearing for his life and for the lives of his fellow officers around him, and agent fired defensive shots. Medics were on the scene immediately and attempted to deliver medical aid to the subject, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. The suspect also had two magazines with ammunition in them that held dozens of rounds. He also had no ID. This looks like a situation where an individual arrived at the scene to inflict maximum damage on individuals and to kill law enforcement.
(02:11)
About hundreds of protestors then showed up at the scene. They began to obstruct and to assault law enforcement officers. We saw objects being thrown at them, including ice and other objects, and a rampant assault began and even an HSI officer agent's finger was bitten off. Crowd control measures were deployed to bring safety to the public and to law enforcement at the scene. And once again, I want to remind everybody that this situation and this tragedy did not have to happen. Our law enforcement are doing everything that they can to protect the public. We're praying for this deceased loved one's family and friends, but we also recognize that the Minnesota governor and the Minneapolis mayor need to take a long, hard look in the mirror. They need to evaluate their rhetoric, their conversations, and their encouragement of such violence against our citizens and our law enforcement officers.
(03:06)
I'll remind you that Governor Walz today in his press conference said that our officers were not even law enforcement, which is a lie. He's called them the Gestapo. He's encouraged residents and citizens and violent rioters to resist. He's doxxed their identities, putting themselves and their family's lives in jeopardy. He's refused to turn over murderers to federal law enforcement officers. He's protected illegal criminals and protected them from being brought to justice and even overseeing a historic unprecedented theft of American taxpayer dollars. Tens of billions of dollars were stolen under his watch and he allowed it to happen and in some instances may have even facilitated it. In other cities and states across the country, we don't see this happen. Local, state and officials work with us to make sure that we're making their streets safer.
(03:57)
I'll point to the city of Memphis, which is where there is a Democrat mayor in place. He worked with us and our federal law enforcement officers, and we saw murder rates drop by 50% because of that partnership. We've seen historic lows in the criminal acts that have happened in that city. We've had the same amount of law enforcement officers there, but a very different result because of the leadership in place.
(04:21)
Last week, ICE did over 2,000 different operations and we saw people be brought to justice and the American people made safer because of that work. We don't have this problem in Texas or in Florida because those individuals in those states work with us and they make sure that they keep peace and calm while they bring criminals to justice. In Minneapolis, Governor Walz and Mayor Frey, they instead choose violence. They instead choose to encourage the destruction of their city and the crime against their people. It appears that they want this lawlessness to continue. It appears that they want chaos to distract from the theft and the fraud and the corruption of their city.
(05:03)
I'll remind you that this city has been corrupt for years with what we've seen with people that have been stealing taxpayer money all under the leadership of Governor Walz and Mayor Frey. I'm asking for all the authorities in Minneapolis and the leaders to work with us. And there are two things that we have repeatedly asked the governor and the mayor to do.
(05:23)
Number one, all we want them to do is that when they are going to release a dangerous criminal from their jails, turn them over to us so we can get them out of this country as soon as possible. Since we have been back in the White House with President Trump's leadership, they have released over 490 criminals onto their streets rather than allow us to get them out of the country to keep families safe.
(05:45)
The second thing that we have asked the governor and the mayor to do is to help us keep people safe. Just give us backup on the streets while we do our targeted operations to get illegal criminals out of our country, and then we wouldn't have to be there facing these types of situations that we face with violent rioters who are impacting and attacking our law enforcement officers. That's all. Those are the two requests that we've asked of them. We've asked them to help us do that so that we can continue to see success in Minneapolis like we see in so many other cities and communities across the country, but they have refused because they want us talking about attacking law enforcement officers instead of the fraud and the theft that they facilitated in Minnesota.
(06:27)
One thing I'd like to do before I take your questions on that situation on the storm is give you a few facts about the storm and what we're facing here in the coming days. This storm is going to produce heavy snow, it's going to produce dangerous freezing rain and ice and life-threatening wind chills that will be sustained for days. Power outages, road closures and other impacts have already started to impact the Midwest, the South, and the East Coast. The most important thing that people can do across this country is to please stay off the roads, to stay home when possible, unless you absolutely have to be out and about, that will not only ensure that you and your family are safe, but that emergency responders aren't out there trying to rescue you when they could be out doing other work to proactively keep people safe and at home. Stay alert by listening to different announcements from your local officials and from your state.
(07:19)
We want to remind everybody that in these emergency disaster situations, it's your local officials and local emergency managers that go out and execute response to these disasters. Your states manage it and the federal government is here to support. We're here and have been opened and visiting and talking with all of the governors and local leaders to make sure they have everything that they need ahead of time and that we can be as prepared as possible for what is going to unfold in the coming days. I want you to make sure that you get the chance to visit the website ready.gov to see recommendations and advice for how you can protect your family and be prepared for the storm that is coming. We have 17 different states and the District of Columbia that have already declared states of emergency. President Trump has already approved emergency declarations at the federal level for these following states: for South Carolina, the Commonwealth of Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, Maryland, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Indiana, and West Virginia.
(08:25)
I'm sure there will be more coming and we are turning those around immediately to make sure that states have the resources from the federal government that they've requested. I have spoken several times on conference calls, but also called personally governors and local leaders to facilitate the partnership that we need to help keep this federal response streamlined with their state responses. The Department of Homeland Security, FEMA, CISA, our cybersecurity team focused on the electrical grid and our critical infrastructure, the Coast Guard and our other federal partners are all embedded in state operation centers across the country. Governors remain in the lead on these responses and we are continuously talking to them to see what they need to continue to take care of their citizens and make sure that people are safe. I activated the National Response Coordination Center, which is where you are right now, two days ago, and we are monitoring the storm and coordinating federal support for the affected areas.
(09:23)
At my direction, FEMA has already prepositioned commodities in many locations across the country. We've embedded partners in state emergency operation centers and we've deployed IMAT teams, incident management assistant teams with dozens more ready to deploy at any moment besides those that have already been prepositioned. We have dozens of urban search and rescue teams that are ready to go out and to save lives in partnership with our local and state authorities should that become necessary. We do have tens of thousands of people in affected states in the South that have lost power. We have utility crews that are working to restore that as quick as possible, and we expect to continue to see that as ice builds on power lines and trees are affected and we see more damage, but we have partnered with our energy companies and rural electric communities to make sure that we are able to facilitate the repairs as soon as possible to get the power on, especially in light of the cold temperatures that we see coming for days on end.
(10:23)
We just ask that everyone would be smart, stay home if possible, take care of your family members, check on your neighbors and continue to work with your local officials to get through this difficult storm, and we will continue to pray for God to bless this great country and all of the families and the public servants who get up and work to keep people safe. With that, I'll take any questions that you may have. Yes?
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Is DHS leading the investigation into this shooting? And if so, will there be a criminal investigation? And also, will we see body camera released from the officers involved?
Kristi Noem (10:55):
We are conducting this investigation just like we do all other officer-involved shootings, and we'll continue to do that ...
Speaker 3 (11:10):
Did the 37-year-old who had a license to carry, did he brandish a gun? And at what point did law enforcement retrieve the gun and also the magazines from him? Can you offer clarity on there?
Kristi Noem (11:21):
This ... And took action to defend the officer's life and those of the public around him. And I don't know of any peaceful protestor that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign. This is a violent riot when you have someone showing up with weapons and are using them to assault law enforcement officers.
Speaker 3 (11:43):
That's because video appears to show he's disarmed before shots are fired. So I just want clarity on that. And beyond that, I just want to follow up and ask who within the federal government is leading the criminal investigation, understanding that CBP OPR has opened up an internal investigation. And beyond that, why did federal agents tell Minneapolis Police Department to leave the scene?
Kristi Noem (12:05):
We're continuing to follow the exact same protocols that we always have. And so this investigation is ongoing. We're continuing to gather the facts as they unfold throughout that, and we'll do it just like we did under the entire Trump administration and previous administrations. Nothing has changed and we'll continue to release details as we have them. But I want you to not distract away from the facts of this situation. Our law enforcement officers were there doing a targeted operation against an individual who was in this country illegally and had a criminal conviction for domestic assault with intent to do bodily harm and other convictions as well. This individual went and impeded their law enforcement operations, attacked those officers, had a weapon on him, and multiple, dozens of rounds of ammunition, wishing to inflict harm on these officers coming, brandishing like that, and impeding their work that they were doing.
(12:57)
We'll continue to allow ... That is a different incident that happened at the same situation after the tragedy unfolded, but yes, that's the kind of assaults and violence that our law enforcement officers are facing out in the streets and that the local leaders are encouraging. Remember what Mayor Frey has said, that he wanted ICE out of the city. We have been working and had a presence in that city for years. We are there to enforce the law and to make sure that the public is safe. Just since we have been there, we have arrested thousands of individuals that have criminal convictions and are in this country illegally and gotten them off the streets of Minneapolis.
(13:35)
The two things that we've asked the mayor and the governor for is that they would partner with us and before they let somebody dangerous out of their jails, that they would let us know so we can deport them out of our country. I do not know why they continue to choose the side of lawbreakers, criminals, murders, and rapists over the citizens of Minneapolis. And this situation that we have today is a tragedy that we don't have to have. We have it because we have a mayor and a governor who encouraged this violence and encouraged this type of rioting.
(14:03)
And remember, these are the individuals that were in charge when Minneapolis burned in 2020. They facilitated it, they encouraged it, and they saw the destruction, and we all watched the destruction of that city back then. It doesn't have to happen again. It appears that they're following the same playbook, and the reason that they're doing it is to distract from the corruption that they have facilitated in fraud and theft from the American taxpayers. Tens of billions of dollars, they have been funneled into criminal pockets and stolen from vulnerable people that needed these programs to take care of their children, to go out and provide services to individuals that were developmentally disabled. People that needed programs that the federal government has to take care of those that are less fortunate and need it. And instead, Governor Walz and Mayor Frey allowed that kind of theft to continue and now they want to perpetuate violence against our law enforcement officers to cover it up.
Speaker 4 (15:06):
You just made claims that the individual posed a threat to law enforcement.
Kristi Noem (15:07):
That is no claim. It is the facts. The facts of this situation, this individual showed up to a law enforcement operation with a weapon and dozens of rounds of ammunition. He wasn't there to peacefully protest. He was there to perpetuate violence and he was asked to show up and to continue to resist by a governor who's irresponsible and has a long history of corruption and lying. And we won't stand for it anymore. These law enforcement officers take an oath. They get up every single day and they go out to protect the public. Many of these individuals live in their communities and this mayor and this governor have doxxed them, they have allowed people to threaten them and their families and expose their identities in order to instill fear and violence. And that's not what America's about. We're going to continue to tell the truth about Minnesota, Minneapolis, what happened here, the theft over the last many years that these leaders have facilitated, and we're going to continue to do our work to get to the bottom of the investigations.
(16:04)
And the one question you should be asking is the mayor, the governor, and the attorney general have all confirmed that they have been subpoenaed to come in front of a criminal, federal grand jury. So they are covering up and are being a part of a system where they are going to be brought to justice for anything that they had to do with this investigation. They have confirmed they've been subpoenaed and they will be in front of a grand jury to get that criminal investigation unfolding and to disclose the kind of fraud that they have allowed to happen.
Speaker 5 (16:39):
The White House has labeled the man who was killed in Minnesota as a domestic terrorist. Is that something you agree with and have you seen any evidence-
Kristi Noem (16:47):
When you perpetuate violence against a government because of ideological reasons and for reasons to resist and perpetuate violence, that is the definition of domestic terrorism. This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers committed an act of domestic terrorism. That's the facts.
Speaker 6 (17:09):
Drew Evans, the Superintendent of Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension had said during our news conference today that federal agents blocked his agency from the shooting scene, when they went, got a judicial warrant, they returned, they were still blocked. Why were they-
Kristi Noem (17:24):
We have asked these state officials to help partner with us on law enforcement operations for months. Ever since President Trump came into the White House, we've asked them for their partnership to stand alongside of us so we could do targeted operations against criminal illegal aliens and to help us make their streets safer. They have refused over and over and over again, and they have perpetuated a narrative that is absolutely false. And our federal law enforcement officers will continue to do their work and they'll do that to make America safe again. Yes?
Speaker 7 (17:55):
Thank you. Sorry. This is the second DHS law enforcement operation shooting that's happened this year. Then there's another incident in Portland. Five people have also died in immigration detention so far this year. Why is immigration enforcement becoming so deadly under your tenure?
Kristi Noem (18:10):
Immigration enforcement is exactly what the American people asked for. When we had a Democrat administration in the White House that facilitated an invasion of millions of people over our southern border and let people come into this country that were completely unvetted. We know for a fact that we had hundreds, if not thousands of terrorists, suspected terrorists, criminal organizations and gangs that came in and have been committing criminal activities against American citizens for years now, that the American people said enough is enough. We want them out of our country, we want them brought to justice and they trusted President Trump to go out there and to make America safe again. It is absolutely false to say that there's more incidents with our law enforcement than there was in history before. In fact, our accuracy and our operations are being conducted in a manner that is historic for accuracy and taking care of people and doing so safely.
(19:07)
So the narrative with the press that they've perpetuated that we have more individuals that have been jeopardized or that our detention centers are ... Absolutely false. Our detention standards and the people that are being taken care of there are at the highest level they've ever been. They exceed state and local standards, and we'll continue to do that and make sure that people have the facts around how people are treated when they're brought into detention, and then we take them home. Yes?
Speaker 8 (19:35):
We've seen some reports about witnesses being taken to the Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis. Could you explain why the witnesses at the shooting this morning have been taken to that building?
Kristi Noem (19:44):
The witnesses to the ... Are you talking about the ones that have been detained that are illegal aliens?
Speaker 8 (19:48):
No. The witnesses, I think, to the event in Minneapolis.
Kristi Noem (19:50):
I won't speak to the investigation and the details, and those will continue to unfold, but I do know that we're continuing to follow the same protocols that we always have.
Speaker 9 (19:58):
Secretary Noem?
Kristi Noem (19:59):
Was there a question back here on the storm?
Speaker 10 (20:02):
Does anyone have a question on the storm? We are at FEMA headquarters.
Speaker 11 (20:05):
Secretary Noem?
Kristi Noem (20:05):
Yes.
Speaker 11 (20:06):
If these are targeted arrests, why are these immigration agents going after civilian protests out of their way? And second-
Kristi Noem (20:13):
This individual impeded the law enforcement officers and attacked them. State the facts as they unfolded on the street today. We were doing a targeted operation against an illegal criminal, and this individual came with a weapon and dozens of rounds of ammunition and attacked them. And these agents took action to defend their lives and to defend the lives of the people around them and acted according to their training. And we will continue to let this process go forward and not allow people like Governor Walz and Mayor Frey to lie about what actually unfolded on that street. Now, they have deemed this situation an unlawful assembly, and these leaders aren't even cleaning up the situation that they have as far as the violent riots that we see unfolding in Minneapolis right now. They need to be strong, take action, protect their citizens, and partner with us to go after these criminals that perpetuate violence and to keep our law enforcement officers safe.
(21:09)
Let's all be grateful for people who take an oath every day and they go out to enforce the laws. That is their job is to enforce the laws and to make sure that there is consequences for breaking the law in this country and that it applies equally to everybody. That is what they do. They do it every day. They do thousands of operations every single week and they do it with excellence. Don't let political corrupt leaders who are just trying to cover up their theft of American taxpayer dollars try to distract you from the facts of the situation. One more question right here.
Speaker 12 (21:42):
Governor Tim Walz said he told Susie Wiles that Minnesota would take the lead on this investigation. Are you working with local law enforcement on the investigation?
Kristi Noem (21:48):
This is the same protocol we'll always follow. Who would trust Governor Walz at this point? The man has stood up and encouraged resistance. He has refused to partner with us. He's sacrificed his citizens safety and their wellbeing by choosing the side of people who break the law and who steal money and who perpetuate violence. He has chosen all of that and backed an administration previously that allowed an invasion of our country. We need to partner with people who truly understand that the law is the law, and in the United States, we will keep people safe. Thank you. Last question.
Speaker 13 (22:21):
Does this move the President closer to invoking the Insurrection Act?
Kristi Noem (22:25):
The President will use every tool that he needs to to follow through on his promises to the American people. I'm proud to work for a president that wants to keep people safe and he recognizes that political individuals like Governor Walz and Mayor Frey need to be met head on with recognizing that we're not going to allow them to distract us from what they've facilitated for corruption in their state. We're going to treat Minneapolis exactly the way that we have treated every other city across this country as far as helping to make those streets safe. Remember, we have other cities with Democrat mayors, Republican mayors that we worked well with together. We've driven down the crime rates, we've driven down the murder rates, we have continued to keep people safe, and we have stopped hundreds of millions of lethal doses of drugs from killing our children and have continued to do operations to make sure that we're protecting them, our kids and our grandkids from the criminal networks that Joe Biden let in and leaders like Governor Walz allowed to be successful and to thrive on the streets of Minneapolis.
(23:25)
It's going to stop. All of the control in this situation is in Governor Walz's hands. Partner with us. Before you release a murderer out onto the streets, give them to us so we can get them out of our country. We are focused specifically on child pedophiles and sexual assault and trafficking rings in Minneapolis, have brought dozens and dozens of them to justice. Why is he protecting them and refusing to work with us? All he has to do is before you let somebody out of your jail onto the streets is give them to us so we can get them out of our country.
(23:57)
The second thing is, just keep people safe. Work with us so that we can go get these criminals and get out of there and not have to worry about our law enforcement officers getting attacked by individuals with guns and ammunition and weapons and assaulting and doxxing them and their families. We'll continue to do all that we can. We also want to continue to make sure that everybody recognizes this storm is significant. It's the largest storm that we've seen impact the most states in this big of a population in possibly decades. So we want everybody to recognize the seriousness of it. Please stay home with your family. We will continue to give you announcements. We'll continue to work with your governors to get the resources that you need. Go to our website, ready.gov and get a list of recommendations from us, but continue to pay attention to your local officials and we'll continue to have conversations with every one of your emergency management directors and your governors to make sure that they're supported throughout this process.
(24:57)
Again, it's going to be very, very cold. So we'd encourage everybody to stock up on fuel, stock up on food, and we will get through this together. With that, thank you. And we'll talk again soon. Thank you.