Republican Harriet Hageman suddenly ends town hall after being pressured about ICE

A Republican Congresswoman abruptly ended a town hall after fielding questions about the administration’s current U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.

U.S. Representative Harriet Hageman of Wyoming suddenly stopped the town hall meeting on Tuesday night and walked off the stage amid booing and shouting, local publication WyoFile reported.

Why It Matters

The Trump administration and Republicans at large have experienced wide backlash from Americans after the ICE killings of citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis this month.

While officials in the Trump administration have labeled Pretti a “domestic terrorist” who held a gun toward the border patrol agents before being gunned down, videos taken by bystanders do not show any gun wielded by Pretti, who worked as an ICU nurse.

What To Know

During the town hall on Tuesday evening, Hageman received many questions regarding the recent shootings of citizens in Minneapolis by ICE agents.

In response to one question, Hageman said: “I haven’t talked about that. I spoke about the Laken Riley Act because it was one of the bills that we passed. I haven’t talked about what was going on in Minnesota.”

“Yeah. Why is that?” one attendee said. “Why haven’t you said that you condemn the violence or given condolences to the families of the victims?”

“It hasn’t been the topic that we’ve been talking about today,” Hageman said. “So I think what has happened in Minnesota is a terrible tragedy for the woman and the man who were killed.”

Another resident at the town hall asked Hageman whether she follows the U.S. Constitution and whether she’s concerned that ICE may have violated the Fourth Amendment’s protections against search and seizure without a warrant.

“I think that I have to look at the investigation,” Hageman said before a series of shouts from attendees. “If there were violations of someone’s constitutional rights, there is redress.”

The attendee questioning Hageman then said, “They are killing American citizens in the streets, and you are doing nothing. You are not saying a single solitary thing to support constituents or to support the American people. As a constitutional lawyer, you should be infuriated. You should be incensed. Why are you not?”

At this point, Hageman suddenly left the stage amid several boos.

Hageman recently announced her run for Senate to replace the retiring Senator Cynthia Lummis. While the first 30 minutes of the town hall touted Hageman’s accomplishments in Congress, the Q&A portion turned into a tension-filled discussion of ICE’s recent actions in Minneapolis.

The Department of Homeland Security initially said on social media that Pretti, age 37, had approached the officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun. However, this contrasts with video footage of the shooting, where Pretti does not appear to be holding a gun in his hand.

“The officers attempted to disarm the suspect but the armed suspect violently resisted,” DHS wrote. “More details on the armed struggle are forthcoming. Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots. Medics on scene immediately delivered medical aid to the subject but was pronounced dead at the scene.”

The ICE killings of Pretti and Good have also sparked backlash from conservative voices, especially as it pertains to gun rights in America.

“I think what frustrates people — you remember Kyle Rittenhouse and how he was made a hero on the right. I’m sure there are people on the conservative side who are saying, ‘Wait a minute, you mean you can’t take a firearm to a protest? Because you were just celebrating a guy for doing it a couple of years ago.’ Alex Pretti’s firearm was lawfully being carried,” Fox News host Trey Gowdy said on Fox News Sunday. “It’s lawful to carry a gun in Minnesota. He never brandished it. He didn’t point it at the cops.”

Newsweek reached out to Hageman for comment via email.

What People Are Saying

U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman said during the Tuesday town hall: “It hasn’t been the topic that we’ve been talking about today. So I think what has happened in Minnesota is a terrible tragedy for the woman and the man who were killed.”

President Donald Trump previously wrote on Truth Social: “This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go—What is that all about? Where are the local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers? The Mayor and the Governor called them off? It is stated that many of these Police were not allowed to do their job, that ICE had to protect themselves—Not an easy thing to do!”