Kristi Noem says Trump and Stephen Miller 'directed' all her decisions in office: report

WASHINGTON, DC: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says her actions in office followed the direction of President Donald Trump and adviser Stephen Miller, even as the Trump administration faces mounting criticism over its handling of the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti.

For context, Noem and other officials claimed Pretti planned to attack federal agents before the encounter, arguing that the fact he was carrying a weapon showed he meant to do harm, a claim that has been widely challenged by video evidence and eyewitness accounts.

Inside the Alex Pretti ‘massacre’ narrative

Kristi Noem told someone who shared her comments with Axios, “Everything I've done, I've done at the direction of the president and Stephen.”

Shortly after Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal agents in Minneapolis on Saturday morning, January 24, officials in Washington realized they could face serious problems but had limited information.

One source familiar with the situation said the officers directly involved in the shooting “all shut up and got lawyers real quick so there wasn't a lot of information.” A report from border agents was later provided to the White House, and officials there understood from it that Pretti had displayed a gun.

According to a source involved in preparing the press statement, Stephen Miller “heard 'gun' and knew what the narrative would be: Pretti came to 'massacre' cops.”

Miller later told Axios that any early comments from the White House were based on the information “sent to the White House through CBP.” DHS published its statement on X at 12:31 pm, with some White House officials having approved it and others not, which caused frustration.

Another source said, “Others within the White House attempted to clean up the DHS statement prior to it being sent, but it had already been disseminated.” Two sources said Miller and Noem’s top adviser, Corey Lewandowski, kept President Trump informed about the statement.

White House points finger at Gregory Bovino

Minutes after the DHS statement, Miller posted on X calling Alex Pretti “an assassin,” which a source said was also based on an early report from Customs and Border Patrol. Noem then used the same language at a news conference, as did the Border Patrol commander overseeing operations in the Twin Cities, Greg Bovino.

A White House source said “Bovino should be blamed” for the misleading information about Pretti, “not Stephen,” adding that Bovino was the one who provided Washington with details about the shooting.

During her news conference, Noem also wrongly suggested Pretti was “brandishing” his weapon, even though videos showed he never reached for it and had already been disarmed before he was shot.

As more bystander videos contradicted the official account over the weekend, President Donald Trump became upset by what he saw on television and social media and decided to make changes to the Minnesota operation. On Monday, January 26, he sent border czar Tom Homan, a critic of the aggressive tactics pushed by Miller, to take charge.

Meanwhile, Miller said the Minnesota operation did not follow guidelines set by the White House after Renee Good’s death.

He told Axios, “The White House provided clear guidance to DHS that the extra personnel that had been sent to Minnesota for force protection should be used for conducting fugitive operations to create a physical barrier between the arrest teams and the disruptors,” adding, “We are evaluating why the CBP team may not have been following that protocol.”