President Donald Trump on Friday publicly praised Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and border czar Tom Homan, portraying both as key figures in his administration’s border enforcement and public safety efforts while forcefully defending Noem amid intensifying criticism tied to federal law enforcement actions in Minnesota.
In a post on Truth Social late Friday, Trump accused political opponents of unfairly targeting Noem and framed the attacks as rooted in hostility toward her performance and position.
“The Radical Left Lunatics, Insurrectionists, Agitators, and Thugs, are going after Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security, because she is a woman, and has done a really GREAT JOB!” Trump wrote.
Trump credited Noem with overseeing what he described as sweeping improvements in border security and crime reduction since the start of his second term a year ago, saying the administration had reversed conditions it inherited.
“The Border disaster that I inherited is fixed,” Trump wrote, asserting that “the violent criminals that were allowed into our Country through Sleepy Joe’s ‘sick’ Open Border Policy, are largely gone, or being strongly sought for purposes of removal.”
The president also made broad claims about nationwide crime trends, saying the U.S. murder rate had dropped to a historic low and pointing to improvements in major cities.
Trump said the murder rate “just reached the lowest level in history, 125 years,” adding that Washington, D.C., “is now one of the safest cities in America,” while noting that “numerous other once very dangerous cities” have also seen progress.
He urged Republicans to stand firm, accused Democrats of financial misconduct, and dismissed protests as a cover for wrongdoing.
“They should all be in jail,” Trump wrote, saying he was elected on “Strong Borders, and Law and Order.”
The posts come as Noem faces mounting criticism over her response to deadly shootings in Minnesota involving federal immigration officers, as well as scrutiny over her oversight of disaster relief funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Officials and lawmakers from both parties have called on Noem to step down, with some raising the possibility of impeachment proceedings.
Following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by Department of Homeland Security agents in Minneapolis last Saturday, Noem described him as a “domestic terrorist” and said he was “brandishing” a gun at the time of the encounter.
She made similar statements earlier this month after Renee Good was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis.
Trump concluded his message about Noem by expressing gratitude and emphasizing the political implications of the moment.
“Thank you to Secretary Kristi Noem,” he wrote. “Remember, ELECTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES!!!”
In a separate Truth Social post, Trump also singled out Homan for praise, describing him as uniquely effective and commending his work on border enforcement.
“Border Czar (Plus!) Tom Homan is doing a FANTASTIC JOB. He is one of a kind. Thank you Tom!!! President DJT”
{Matzav.com}
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has signed a new executive order instructing the city’s police department to examine any claims of unlawful conduct by federal immigration agents and to refer those agents for possible prosecution when warranted, his office announced today.
Johnson revealed the move in a post on X, saying he had enacted what he called the “ICE On Notice” executive order, which he said is designed to “laying the groundwork to investigate and prosecute ICE agents if they break the law in Chicago.”
“There is no such thing as absolute immunity in America,” Johnson wrote. “Chicago will not stand by as ICE terrorizes our communities.”
Under the order, Chicago police officers are directed to retain body-worn camera footage from encounters involving federal immigration agents and to identify the supervising federal official present at the scene. Officers are also instructed to file reports documenting any alleged violations of state or local law committed by federal personnel.
The move represents a sharper stance by City Hall toward Immigration and Customs Enforcement and fits within Chicago’s long-standing position as a sanctuary city, where cooperation with federal immigration enforcement is restricted.
Johnson’s language indicates that the order is intended not just as a procedural directive, but also as a signal to immigrant communities that the city plans to push back against what he characterizes as fear-based enforcement tactics.
By asserting that there is no such thing as “absolute immunity,” the mayor appeared to challenge the notion that federal officers are beyond accountability when operating within city limits.
His comments highlight a larger national dispute over the reach of federal immigration authorities and the extent to which local governments can contest enforcement actions they believe exceed legal limits.
The announcement comes amid intense national debate over immigration enforcement, as major cities increasingly take independent steps to influence how federal policy is carried out locally.
Johnson did not outline when the executive order would formally take effect or detail specific enforcement mechanisms, but his remarks suggest Chicago intends to more closely monitor ICE operations and pursue accountability if laws are broken.
“With today’s order, we are putting ICE on notice in our city. Chicago will not sit idly by while Trump floods federal agents into our communities and terrorizes our residents,” Johnson wrote in a statement.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. As a general matter, federal officers are typically shielded from state prosecution for actions performed in the course of their official duties.
That immunity applies only when the actions in question are authorized under federal law and are deemed necessary and proper.
Across the country, prominent Democratic leaders at the state and local level have pushed back against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies, particularly following the deaths of two U.S. citizens who were killed by federal agents in Minneapolis.
In Minnesota, state officials filed a lawsuit challenging the deployment of additional immigration officers, but a federal judge today declined to issue a preliminary injunction that would have halted the operation.
In New York, Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday proposed legislation that would prohibit local law enforcement agencies from being deputized by ICE to participate in immigration enforcement activities.
{Matzav.com}
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Friday that his administration will continue to compel homeless New Yorkers to leave the streets only “as a last resort,” even as City Hall disclosed that 13 people have now died outdoors and dangerously cold temperatures are expected to intensify over the weekend.
The Democratic socialist reiterated that outreach teams will require people to enter shelters only when they are judged to be a danger to themselves or others, maintaining that position as forecasted wind chills were expected to plunge to a real-feel low of minus 1 degree from Saturday into Sunday.
When asked how city workers decide whether someone poses a risk to themselves, Mamdani said the determination depends on a range of considerations before forcing someone inside, including whether the individual appears adequately dressed for the cold.
“There are a number of specific criteria that is used in determining whether one is a danger to themselves or to others,” Mamdani told reporters while attending an unrelated event in Long Island City.
“I think we can find some of this criteria also in how an individual is clothed, whether they are deemed to actually be warm in those settings, as well as their behavior,” Hizzoner said.
“And for the New Yorkers who are deemed to be a threat to themselves or to others, there is a process of involuntary confinement which is a last resort,” he continued. “However, it has been utilized a number of times whenever city workers have come to that conclusion.”
Later Friday, the mayor’s office announced that the number of people who have died outdoors had increased by three since last Saturday, when the city was hit by prolonged subfreezing weather and Winter Storm Fern.
A City Hall spokesperson said the total now stands at 13 deaths, up from the 10 reported earlier in the week, covering the period from Saturday through Tuesday. Officials did not release further details about the three additional deaths, and the timing of those fatalities remained unclear.
City officials previously said that at least six of the initial 10 people who died outdoors had earlier contact with the city’s shelter system, and that seven of those deaths were believed to be linked to hypothermia.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner was still reviewing the cases to determine official causes of death for all 13 individuals, and their names had not yet been formally released.
One of the deceased was identified as Frederick Jones, 67, who had previously experienced homelessness and was discovered dead Saturday morning in Midtown, roughly a mile from his government-subsidized apartment building, according to a report.
Police responded twice to calls involving Jones — once Friday morning and again around 11:30 p.m. that night, before the coldest temperatures set in — but he declined assistance during the first encounter and did not meet the threshold for involuntary removal. During the second call, first responders were unable to locate him, Gothamist reported.
“I’m just in shock,” Shonell McKinley, Jones’ court-appointed guardian, told the outlet.
“He should not have been outside. He had a roof over his head.”
Another person who died was Michael Veronico, 44, who was found Saturday morning outside a building near Warren Street in Brooklyn and appeared to be homeless.
According to Gothamist, his family said he likely died alone in the extreme cold from a drug overdose after struggling with substance abuse for years.
Mamdani’s administration said Friday that the city has opened 18 “enhanced warming centers” and 20 standard warming centers and has significantly increased outreach efforts ahead of the weekend deep freeze.
Workers from the Department of Homeless Services are now putting in overtime and canvassing streets every two hours, rather than every four, in search of unsheltered individuals.
Since a “cold blue” emergency was declared on Jan. 19, City Hall said outreach teams have placed 825 people into “safe havens” and other shelter options and carried out 15 involuntary removals.
Despite those efforts, Mamdani’s restrained approach to moving people indoors has drawn criticism, including from former Mayor Eric Adams, who urged him to take more aggressive action.
“On 12/05/25, I begged then Mayor-elect Mamdani not to reverse our policy that kept homeless New Yorkers from freezing outdoors in makeshift encampments,” Adams wrote Thursday on X, referring to Mamdani’s decision to halt homeless encampment sweeps upon taking office.
Mamdani had also instructed police and sanitation workers to stop dismantling homeless encampments in the weeks leading up to the deadly cold spell, The Post reported Thursday.
Adams appeared to place responsibility for the deaths on his successor, calling for a return to the prior policy.
“Every day of delay risks more lives,” he said.
Queens Republican Councilwoman Joann Ariola also pressed Mamdani to take firmer steps to move people off the streets.
“If he wants to do better, the Mayor could start by actually enforcing the Code Blue so our most vulnerable stop freezing to death on our streets,” she said.
“Especially during Code Blue conditions, involuntary commitment has to be on the table to protect people who clearly lack the capacity to understand the danger of remaining on the streets in extreme weather,” said Queens Councilman Phil Wong, a Democrat.
“We’ve already seen 10 people die, and we are not seeing the urgency needed to use tools like involuntary commitment quickly enough to prevent further loss of life.”
Among those found dead Saturday morning was a homeless woman identified by law enforcement sources as 64-year-old Barbara Szuter in Brooklyn, authorities said.
That same morning, a 60-year-old man was discovered outside St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx. Staff rushed him inside for treatment, but he was later pronounced dead, police said.
Authorities also reported that one man in Manhattan and another in Queens were separately found outdoors Saturday morning and later died at local hospitals.
One of the victims, 52-year-old Nolberto Jimbo-Niola, was found seated on a bench in North Corona, Queens, on Sunday morning, just days after being discharged from Elmhurst Hospital, according to Gothamist, citing state Sen. Jessica Ramos and other officials.
Another fatality was 90-year-old Doreen Ellis, who lived in a Brooklyn apartment and was found dead Monday morning after wandering outside during the snowstorm the night before. Loved ones told Gothamist that she suffered from dementia.
A man whose age was not immediately available was also found dead Monday morning at a construction site in the Bronx.
The 10th death reported before the updated tally involved a 47-year-old man who apparently fell from a bench, struck his head, and was found dead Tuesday outside a Key Foods supermarket in Flushing, Queens, sources told The Post.
City data shows there were 29 cold-exposure deaths in 2023, based on the most recent figures that do not distinguish between people who were homeless and those who had shelter. From 2020 through 2023, the city averaged roughly 34 cold-exposure fatalities each year.
{Matzav.com}
A federal judge in Texas on Saturday ordered the release of a 5-year-old boy and his father who had been transferred to a detention facility amid President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement actions in Minnesota.
In a written ruling issued Saturday, U.S. District Judge Fred Biery sharply criticized the government’s handling of the case involving Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, writing that the two “seek nothing but the modicum of due process and the rule of law.”
“Observing human behavior confirms that for some among us, the perfidious lust for unbridled power and the imposition of cruelty in its quest know no bounds and are bereft of human decency,” Biery wrote. “And the rule of law be damned.”
Federal officers detained the father and son last week after Conejo Ramos returned home from preschool. An image of the child wearing a bright blue hat and carrying a Spider-Man backpack quickly spread online, sparking widespread anger as immigration enforcement activity in the state intensified.
Biery accused the government of disregarding constitutional protections and said the administration appeared to require what he described as a basic refresher in civics.
“Civics lesson to the government: Administrative warrants issued by the executive branch to itself do not pass probable cause muster,” Biery wrote. “That is called the fox guarding the henhouse. The Constitution requires an independent judicial officer.”
The judge appended the widely circulated photograph of the child to the ruling beneath his signature, along with two verses from the Bible.
{Matzav.com}
A partial shutdown of the federal government began at midnight after Congress failed to enact six remaining appropriations bills before the deadline, leaving multiple agencies without authorized funding.
The lapse occurred even though the Senate moved late Friday to approve a package covering five funding bills and to temporarily extend funding for the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks, the key point of contention in negotiations. That agreement, reached between Senate Democrats and the White House, still requires approval from the House, which is scheduled to return to Washington on Monday.
The dispute that led to the shutdown has centered largely on immigration enforcement policy under President Donald Trump. Following the longest government shutdown in U.S. history last fall, lawmakers have been working bill by bill to fund federal agencies through September 2026. Six of the twelve required spending measures have already cleared Congress and been signed into law. The remaining six became the focus of the current standoff.
In recent weeks, bipartisan talks appeared close to producing a resolution. Draft legislative text for the outstanding measures was released on January 20. Five of the bills were bundled together, while the legislation funding DHS was kept separate. House Democrats warned they would not back the broader package if DHS funding was included, arguing that it failed to impose sufficient limits on Immigration and Customs Enforcement following the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer in Minneapolis.
When the House voted last week, the DHS measure passed with support from only seven Democrats, while the larger funding package advanced with strong bipartisan backing. Lawmakers then combined the measures and sent them to the Senate in an effort to speed passage.
That strategy unraveled after the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis last weekend. Senate Democrats sharply opposed approving DHS funding without additional reforms, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that Democrats would withhold the votes needed to advance the package unless the DHS funding was removed.
Senators returned to Washington this week without a clear path forward. On Wednesday, Schumer outlined Democratic demands, including ending roving immigration patrols, banning the use of masks by agents, and tightening warrant requirements. Republicans, including some who criticized the events in Minneapolis, urged Democrats to take those concerns directly to the Trump administration.
Republican leaders initially pressed ahead with a procedural vote on the full funding package, which failed Thursday. Hours later, Senate Democrats and the White House reached a compromise. Under the deal, Democrats agreed to support the five non-DHS spending bills, while DHS funding would be extended at current levels for two weeks as negotiations over reforms continue.
The Senate approved the five-bill package Friday by a 71–29 vote and cleared a short-term funding extension for DHS by voice vote. Because of the changes, the House must now act on the revised package, but it is not scheduled to reconvene until Monday.
As a result of the funding lapse, several major departments and their subagencies are now unfunded. In addition to DHS, those affected include the Defense Department, State Department, Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, as well as the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service.
Despite the shutdown, the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations are not expected to be disrupted. DHS received approximately $165 billion in additional funding last year through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, including $75 billion for ICE and $65 billion for Customs and Border Protection. That funding exceeds typical annual allocations and allows operations to continue without new appropriations.
Other parts of the federal government remain fully funded. The six spending bills already enacted cover agencies including the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, legislative branch operations, Department of Commerce, Justice Department, NASA, National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, Department of the Interior, and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Federal shutdowns occur under the Antideficiency Act, which bars agencies from spending money that Congress has not authorized. Each year, Congress must pass twelve appropriations bills before the fiscal year begins on October 1. Lawmakers often delay final action and package bills together or pass temporary funding extensions to allow negotiations to continue.
Last year, Congress missed the deadline without passing any funding measures or a short-term extension, triggering a shutdown that lasted 43 days.
When a shutdown takes effect, agencies without funding must halt nonessential activities. Each department determines which employees are considered essential. Essential personnel continue working without pay during the shutdown but are entitled to back pay once funding is restored. Nonessential employees are typically furloughed and also receive back pay after the government reopens.
Because the current funding lapse began over the weekend, most shutdown procedures will be implemented at the start of the next workweek. The impact is expected to be limited if the House approves the revised funding package quickly.
The most significant strain during shutdowns often falls on essential workers who must continue working without pay. During last year’s shutdown, the administration relied on alternative funding sources to pay members of the military. Air traffic controllers and airport security personnel, also deemed essential, continued working as staffing shortages led to flight delays and cancellations, with some workers reporting they had to take on second jobs to cover expenses.
The duration of the current shutdown will depend largely on House action. Some conservative lawmakers have signaled they want changes to the DHS bill or amendments to the overall package, but they could relent if the president pressures holdouts to support the measure. With Republicans holding only a narrow majority, Democrats could also step in to help pass the legislation if internal GOP divisions persist.
The next procedural step is scheduled for Monday afternoon, when the House Rules Committee is set to meet at 4 p.m. Eastern Time to consider the funding package. If it clears the committee, the bill would move to a rule vote on the House floor, typically decided by a simple majority. Some conservatives have warned they may block that vote if their demands are not addressed.
If the package stalls, House Speaker Mike Johnson could bring it to the floor under suspension of the rules, a process that would require a two-thirds majority for passage. Should the House ultimately approve the funding measures, President Trump is expected to sign them promptly, bringing the shutdown to an end.
{Matzav.com}
President Trump said today that his administration will not deploy federal forces to confront protests or riots in what he described as “poorly run” Democratic-led cities unless local officials formally request assistance.
The president laid out his policy in a Truth Social post, one day after anti-ICE demonstrations broke out in Los Angeles and Eugene, Oregon.
Trump said cities are expected to prevent lawless behavior, including assaults on officers, and are responsible for safeguarding federal property within their jurisdictions.
“I have instructed Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, that under no circumstances are we going to participate in various poorly run Democrat Cities with regard to their Protests and/or Riots unless, and until, they ask us for help,” Trump wrote this afternoon.
“We will, however, guard, and very powerfully so, any and all Federal Buildings that are being attacked by these highly paid Lunatics, Agitators, and Insurrectionists. Please be aware that I have instructed ICE and/or Border Patrol to be very forceful in this protection of Federal Government Property.”
Trump’s comments came as his administration faces legal challenges from Minneapolis, Chicago, and other cities that have opposed the presence of federal forces, including ICE. He also recently urged de-escalation following the shooting of Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis last weekend.
“If Local Governments are unable to handle the Insurrectionists, Agitators, and Anarchists, we will immediately go to the location where such help is requested, and take care of the situation very easily and methodically,” Trump said.
“It is your obligation to also protect our Federal Property, Buildings, Parks, and everything else. We are there to protect Federal Property, only as a back up, in that it is Local and State Responsibility to do so,” he added.
“Therefore, to all complaining Local Governments, Governors, and Mayors, let us know when you are ready, and we will be there — But, before we do so, you must use the word, ‘PLEASE.’”
Trump, who referred to the demonstrations opposing his immigration enforcement policies in Los Angeles as “The Los Angeles riots,” used sharp language throughout his post and warned of aggressive federal responses if federal sites are attacked.
“Remember that I stated, in the strongest of language, to BEWARE — ICE, Border Patrol or, if necessary, our Military, will be extremely powerful and tough in the protection of our Federal Property. We will not allow our Courthouses, Federal Buildings, or anything else under our protection, to be damaged in any way, shape, or form,” Trump wrote.
His statement followed a night of large and sometimes chaotic protests in Los Angeles and came a week after Pretti’s death, which set off a wave of violent demonstrations in Minneapolis.
“If Local Governments are unable to handle the Insurrectionists, Agitators, and Anarchists, we will immediately go to the location where such help is requested, and take care of the situation very easily and methodically, just as we did the Los Angeles Riots one year ago, where the Police Chief said that, ‘We couldn’t have done it without the help of the Federal Government.’”
“In the meantime, by copy of this Statement, I am informing Local Governments, as I did in Los Angeles when they were rioting at the end of the Biden Term, that you must protect your own State and Local Property,” Trump added.
Trump also pointed to unrest in Eugene, Oregon, saying protesters there caused significant damage Friday night.
“These criminals broke into a Federal Building, and did great damage, also scaring and harassing the hardworking employees. Local Police did nothing in order to stop it.”
Police in Eugene confirmed that demonstrators “breached the building and went inside,” though officials said officers acted to keep the situation “de-escalated.”
{Matzav.com}
