Seventy House Democrats are supporting an effort to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem following the of a 37-year-old woman in Minneapolis by a federal immigration agent.
Democratic Representative Robin Kelly of Illinois officially introduced against Noem on Wednesday, including charges of obstruction of Congress, violation of public trust, and self-dealing. Seventy members of Congress—all Democrats—are co-sponsoring the impeachment articles, according to a from Kelly’s office.
“Secretary Noem has brought her reign of terror to the Chicago land area, L.A., New Orleans, Charlotte, Durham, and communities north to south to east to west,” Kelly said at a on Wednesday. “She needs to be held accountable for her actions.”
“This is real life, and real people are being hurt and killed,” Kelly continued. “Renee Nicole Good is dead because Secretary Noem allowed her DHS agents to run amok. Families are forever torn apart.”
The effort to impeach the Trump Administration official comes amid widespread anger over the killing of , a U.S. citizen and mother of three, in Minneapolis last week. Federal officials, including Noem, have described the shooting as an act of “self-defense.” Noem stated last week that she believed the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent who shot Good followed his training and accused Good of attempting to run over the officer with her car. However, videos of the incident seem to that account, and local leaders and Democratic lawmakers have strongly challenged that depiction.
One day after Good’s death, Border Patrol agents in a separate incident in Portland, further stoking public anger over the Trump Administration’s immigration crackdown in communities nationwide. Thousands of have in the days since—both in large cities and .
The impeachment articles filed by Kelly accuse Noem of barring members of Congress from entering Department of Homeland Security (DHS) facilities where undocumented immigrants are detained. The filing also accuses Noem of having “breached the public trust” by “directing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to make widespread warrantless arrests, forgo due process, and use violence against United States citizens, lawful residents, and other individuals.” It lists several incidents from Noem’s immigration enforcement operation in Chicago and references last week’s Minneapolis shooting. The filing further alleges that Noem used “her position for personal gain while inappropriately using taxpayer dollars,” including allegedly skipping the normal contract process and spending taxpayer money on a $200 million ad campaign to recruit ICE agents.
A DHS spokesperson referred to the impeachment effort against Noem as a “silly” move in a statement to .
“As ICE officers are facing a 1,300% increase in assaults against them, Rep. Kelly is more focused on showmanship and fundraising clicks than actually cleaning up her crime-ridden Chicago district,” the spokesperson said. “We hope she would get serious about doing her job to protect American people, which is what this Department is doing under Secretary Noem.”
The impeachment effort is unlikely to gain momentum in the Republican-led House. However, Kelly stood firm in her decision to file the impeachment articles.
“Secretary Noem has called my impeachment effort ‘silly.’ I want to tell her right now: Secretary Noem, you have violated your oath of office and there will be consequences,” Kelly said. “I am watching you, members of Congress are watching you, the American people—most importantly—are watching you. And most of all, we are not liking what we’re seeing. If you believe impeachment is ‘silly,’ then you are not taking your job or our Constitution seriously.”
