While in Minneapolis two names still hang in the air - Alex Pretti and Renee Good - in Washington the heads of the agencies enforcing Trump\u2019s deportation agenda are appearing before Congress. Before the House Committee on Homeland Security, Todd Lyons of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Rodney Scott of Customs and Border Protection, and Joseph Edlow of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services are expected to explain how they justify the intensified enforcement of immigration law in American cities. The timing is explosive. Public support for the agencies\u2019 actions is declining, yet they are backed by substantial funding from a spending bill passed last year that enabled the nationwide expansion of these measures. More money, more personnel, more operations - and at the same time growing criticism of how those powers are being used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fatal shootings in Minneapolis weigh particularly heavily. A Border Patrol agent and a Customs and Border Protection officer opened fire when Alex Pretti was killed. The second, Renee Good, was shot by an officer from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Since then, the question has loomed over whether the actions of the officers were proportionate and who bears political responsibility. Civil rights organizations accuse the agencies of violating the rights of migrants as well as American citizens protesting deportations. The issues range from arrests in residential neighborhoods to aggressive operations and the expansion of federal authority into cities that long considered themselves places of refuge. The agencies reject the accusations and point to their statutory mandate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For that reason, the hearing will be more than a routine appointment. It is a public reckoning over the direction and limits of state power at home. Two deaths have altered the political debate. Now those responsible must explain how it came to this - and how they intend to prevent such scenes from happening again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n