WASHINGTON — Democratic members of Congress on Thursday called for oversight hearings and independent probes into the fatal shooting of Renee Good by a federal immigration agent as well as the wider Trump administration approach to immigration enforcement.

The lawmakers raised concerns about whether the American people would have doubts about a federal investigation into the shooting in Minneapolis, pointing to the quick defenses of the agent from President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that included descriptions of what happened that didn’t appear to match with videos of the incident.

And Sen. Christopher S. Murphy of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, suggested a DHS appropriations bill might address Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection operations.

“I think it should be clear to Republicans that if they want Democratic votes for a DHS appropriations bill, they’re going to have to work with us on our concerns,” Murphy said.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington was among Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee who on Thursday called for investigations into the shooting and to bring Attorney General Pamela Bondi and Noem to testify at oversight hearings.

“We need an independent investigation into what happened in Minneapolis. This is not the first time this has happened,” Jayapal said during a Thursday committee markup.

“In only the last four months, immigration agents have fired on at least nine people, and ICE also shot and killed Silverio Villegas Gonzalez in Chicago and suddenly claimed he was violent,” Jayapal said. “Congress needs to step up. This committee needs to step up.”

Rep. Deborah K. Ross, D-N.C., said the Judiciary panel should be about preventing and punishing crime, “but it should also be about calling out federal agents who are using their authority and legal force improperly.”

Ross pointed out that Jayapal had a “shadow hearing” where more than 20 members of Congress showed up to talk about actions of ICE officers in their districts.

“We haven’t had one hearing on that in this official committee. We haven’t had one expression of even unpleasantness with that from the other side of the aisle,” Ross said. “It is time that this committee does its job.”

Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said Bondi is scheduled to testify at an oversight hearing next month. “ICE agents have been doxxed, tracked, harassed and interfered with when they’re trying to do their job, and shot at in Dallas,” Jordan said.

Jordan said sanctuary jurisdictions all over the country are not complying with detainers and mentioned that in one case “we had ICE agents walking in the front door as the judge is letting the bad guy walk out the back door.”

“So we all mourn the loss of this individual yesterday, but I think we need to keep some things in perspective,” Jordan said.

Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., said Democrats had already made up their minds on the Minneapolis shooting and have not sought to deescalate criticism of immigration enforcement officials or urge the public to obey orders of law enforcement.

“When you come here and sit down and say, ‘Let’s investigate this murder,’ which is effectively what you’re saying, what you’re doing is undermining the very notion of an impartial investigation, and that does not inure to your benefit,” Biggs said.

Jayapal at the hearing showed images of video of the incident and compared it to the statements from Noem that called it an act of domestic terrorism and Trump saying the ICE agent was run over. She later said everybody in America is watching these videos.

“When you say we shouldn’t jump to conclusions, remember that the first people that jumped to conclusions were Kristi Noem and Donald Trump, and we are not allowing that narrative to continue,” Jayapal said.

Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and other Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee wrote a letter to Chairman Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., asking for Noem to testify.

“Contrary to Secretary Noem’s press statements, there has been no evidence shared that would justify Ms. Good’s killing,” the panel Democrats wrote. “The perpetrator must be held accountable, and Secretary Noem must answer for this shooting as well as other recent acts of violence by her officers and agents.”

Rep. Ami Bera, D-Calif., on an appearance on C-SPAN, said there needs to be more than an investigation into this one shooting, pointing out that Noem talked about how the agent was just following his training.

“What ICE is doing around the country is putting innocent individuals in harm’s way, so that’s got to be investigated,” Bera said.

“The fact is, they’re recruiting folks that probably are not qualified to do this,” Bera said. “Forty-seven days of training. You’re armed. You’re going out there in a very aggressive way. I think that also needs to be looked at.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, when asked at a news conference if Democrats would slash ICE funding or hold ICE accountable for shootings, said Noem “is a stone-cold liar” and there is “no evidence at all that this was a justified shooting.”

“Let’s deal with the tragedy right now. She hasn’t even been buried. Her family is grieving. She was a single mom and an American citizen,” Jeffries said. “We all are outraged by what took place in Minneapolis, and we will respond decisively.”

Senate responses

Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan, the top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, called on Republican colleagues “to immediately convene public oversight hearings on this and numerous other reports of excessive force, intimidation, and other egregious conduct by federal officers.”

“There is no question that our federal government must carry out its immigration enforcement responsibilities, but we must ensure those operations are conducted professionally, within the bounds of the law, and that officers and their leadership are held accountable for their actions,” Peters posted on social media.

Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul, who chairs the Homeland Security panel, had no comment Thursday when asked whether the committee would conduct an oversight hearing on the incident. “Let me think about it,” Paul said. “I don’t have an answer for you.”

Iowa Republican Sen. Charles E. Grassley, the Senate Judiciary chair, also urged restraint until an investigation when asked whether the panel would examine the issue.

“ICE is a law enforcement agency. They have a responsibility to do their job. The extent to which there was anything wrong in this particular case, I think I’d be wise to wait for the FBI investigation to get over before I do any conclusions,” Grassley said.

Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, a Republican and member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, expressed uncertainty when asked what kind of congressional oversight was appropriate in response to the shooting. “I don’t know the answer to that,” Hawley said. “I think the first thing to do is to get all the facts, which I don’t have yet.”

The Homeland Security panel will “do our due diligence, but I think that right now, I mean, this is obviously a tragic situation multiple times over,” Hawley said. “It’s tragic for the individual who was shot. It’s tragic for the officer who was involved.”

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., called for “an independent investigation immediately” when asked whether withholding government funds or a shutdown would be appropriate in response.

Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer of New York told reporters that when watching the video of the shooting, “you felt like your stomach was being punched.”

“Looking at the video, there seemed no justification for what these agents did,” Schumer said. “There needs to be a full investigation at the federal level, although I have little faith in the FBI of doing a fair investigation, or DHS, but at the local level as well.”

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