Texas has frozen over, and so has hell, apparently.
On conservative radio host Mark Davis’ Monday morning show, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott — one of President Donald Trump’s top boosters — reportedly had uncharacteristic words of criticism for Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the wake of the deadly shooting of Minnesota protester Alex Pretti.
In the interview, Abbott said ICE must “recalibrate” its mission to rebuild public trust, the Express-News reports.
“In general, we need to have respect for law enforcement officers in the country. ICE, they are law enforcement officers,” Republican governor said. “So they, being the White House, need to recalibrate on what needs to be done to make sure that that respect is going to be reinstilled. And that’s not an easy task, especially under the current circumstances.”
Abbott added that ICE officials should “get back to what they wanted to do to begin with — and that is to remove people from the country who are here illegally,” according to the daily. Instead of focusing on that mission, he said, agents are stirring up conflict in the communities where they’re carrying out actions.
Abbott, who’s up for reelection in 2026, said he remains hopeful the Trump administration is working on a “game plan.” He added that would allow immigration agents to “go about their job in a more structured way to make sure that they are going to be able to remove these people, but without causing all the kinds of problems and fighting in communities that they are experiencing right now.”
Despite Abbott’s apparent acknowledgement that ICE’s tactics are part of the problem, he characteristically went on the partisan attack. Ultimately, he blamed Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both Democrats, for whipping up instability with divisive rhetoric.
“Your responsibility, your duty, is to use your office to make sure that there’s going to be calm and order in your community, and that means tamping down the rhetoric, tamping down the — even the anger that your local residents feel — and instead instill calm and order,” Abbott said, according to the Express-News. “This is truly the problem in Minnesota. It’s more about the lack of leadership, and the lack of calming by the governor, by the mayor — and candidly, I think they want it that way.”
Never mind that Walz and Frey have consistently called for protesters to remain calm and peaceful and have warned angry residents not to resort to actions that would result in more dramatic retaliation from the White House.
Abbott isn’t the only GOP politician distancing himself from ICE and the administration following the killing of Pretti, an ICU nurse with no criminal record.
Congressional Republicans, including House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Andrew Garbarino, Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas and Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have called for an investigation into the slaying.
On social media, Cassidy of Louisiana called the shooting “incredibly disturbing” and warned that the “credibility of ICE and DHS are at stake.”
Texas Republican Mark McCaul has also called for an investigation in a Sunday X post.
“I am troubled by the events that have unfolded in Minneapolis,” said McCaul, who represents the mostly rural 10th Congressional District that stretches from Austin east toward Houston. “As an attorney and former federal prosecutor, I believe a thorough investigation is necessary—both to get to the bottom of these incidents and to maintain Americans’ confidence in our justice system.”
Second Amendment groups have also criticized the Trump administration’s rhetoric following the shooting after White House officials suggested Pretti’s lawful concealed-carry handgun was reason enough for agents to shoot and kill him.
“Responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens,” the NRA responded in a statement.
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