Break It Down!

Occasionally, as I sit to prepare and post a story for the week, I discover a writer at some news outlet has already written the story I’d like to tell, in such a compelling way, I simply opt to share the piece, rather than curate or compose one from scratch. This analysis by Aaron Blake, a CNN Senior Reporter, based in Washington, D.C. is just such a piece.

Blake notes that Tricia McLaughlin, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokeswomanwill soon exit the agency. He provides several salient examples of behavior that precipitated McLaughlin’s pending departure, and quite frankly, should have been deemed worthy of jettisoning others as well.

The administration, with McLaughlin, acting as DHS’s forward-facing rep, seemed to think they could say whatever they wanted about episodes such as the shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents, regardless of the evidence. But there proved to be political consequences to that approach, and one such repercussion is that McLaughlin will leave the agency next week. More than a few observers would argue, too little, too late.

A Quinnipiac University poll earlier this month showed registered voters said by more than a 2-to-1 margin (61%-25%) that they did not think the administration had given an “honest account” of Pretti’s shooting in Minneapolis in late January.

Over and over again in recent months, DHS has made claims that were later undermined by video, other evidence, local police and/or judges. Its legal cases against people it accused of targeting federal agents repeatedly fell apart.

Here are 11 DHS claims that, shall we say, failed the Believe Your Lying Eyes Test.

Renee Good – January 7

The claims: McLaughlin said Good had “weaponized her vehicle in an attempt to kill or cause bodily harm to federal law enforcement.” Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem called it “an act of domestic terrorism.” And President Donald Trump said Good “willfully and viciously ran over” the agent.

The evidence: Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross was not run over. There is some question about whether the vehicle made contact with him. But there remains no evidence that Good aimed to run over the agent; indeed, Good was turning away from the agent as she drove away and was shot. And video evidence shows Ross continuing to shoot her even from the side of the vehicle.

Alex Pretti – January 24

The claims: McLaughlin said it looked like Pretti had aimed to “massacre law enforcement.” Noem again invoked “domestic terrorism.” White House adviser Stephen Miller called Pretti an ”assassin” who “tried to murder federal agents.”

The evidence: The video contradicted these claims even more strongly than with Good. There is no evidence that Pretti targeted the agents. He was legally armed but did not draw his gun, and he was disarmed before he was shot and killed. The administration has since backed off of these claims.

Marimar Martinez – October 4, 2025

The claims: Good and Pretti were not the first US citizens to be accused of terrorism. After a Border Patrol agent shot Marimar Martinez several times in Chicago, a DHS statement said the agents involved were “ambushed by domestic terrorists that rammed federal agents with their vehicles.” It said the shots were “defensive.” McLaughlin added: “We will not allow domestic terrorists to attack our law enforcement.”

The evidence: Video evidence released last week bolsters Martinez’s claim that it was her vehicle that was rammed, not the agent’s. And the prosecution of Martinez previously fell apart amid numerous problems, including the fact that the agent’s vehicle — which was due to be evidence — was driven more than 1,000 miles away after the incident.

Attacking agents with shovels and brooms – January 14

The claims: DHS claimed in a statement that three migrants, including one who was shot in the leg in Minneapolis, Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, “violently assaulted law enforcement with a shovel and broom.” Noem described an “attempted murder of federal law enforcement.”

The evidence: ICE admitted last week that its agents made “false statements” under oath, and Justice Department prosecutors moved to drop criminal charges against two of the men. Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said the claims were contradicted by video evidence.

Threats to assassinate Trump – May 2025

The claims: DHS accused Milwaukee resident Ramón Morales Reyes of writing a letter in which he “threatened to assassinate President Trump.” Noem urged Trump’s critics to tone down their rhetoric.

The evidence: Last month, another man admitted in court that the letter was a ruse, and was actually written by him. The man had allegedly stabbed Morales Reyes and wanted to get him deported before he could testify. DHS’ claim remains online, with no indication that it falsely accused Morales Reyes. (It instead says he was “no longer under investigation.”)

Greg Bovino and tear gas – October 23, 2025

The claims: Greg Bovino, the Border Patrol official who formerly led the Minneapolis operation, claimed he deployed tear gas after being struck in the helmet by a rock in Chicago. DHS also said a rock “struck Chief Greg Bovino in the head.”

The evidence: In a case involving limits on federal agents’ use of force, a judge said Bovino “admitted in his deposition that he lied multiple times” about the incident. The judge said Bovino’s claims shifted repeatedly, and he finally admitted no rock had been thrown at him before he deployed the tear gas.

The aggressive apprehension of a teenager – October 10, 2025

The claims: After video emerged of an aggressive apprehension of a teenager in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, McLaughlin claimed it was old video and didn’t involve ICE. She called it “a video from a burglary arrest Chicago Police made over a year ago.”

The evidence: PolitiFact determined McLaughlin’s claims were false. The scene involved agents wearing uniforms that identified them as tied to ICE, and it would make no sense for the arrest to involve Chicago police, given it was in a suburb 30 miles away. The teenager’s family also spoke out.

Another shooting by an agent, in Maryland – December 24, 2025

The claims: DHS claimed that two men were in a van that one of them drove “directly at ICE officers,” in Glen Burnie, Maryland. One of them was shot by an agent.

The evidence: Anne Arundel County police later said one of the two men was “already in custody” at the time. DHS later amended its claims to reflect that only one person was in the van.

A 13-year-old and a gun – October 9, 2025

The claims: McLaughlin said that a 13-year-old who was arrested and detained by ICE in Massachusetts “was in possession of a firearm and 5-7 inch knife when arrested.”

The evidence: Everett, Massachusetts, Mayor Carlo DeMaria strongly denied the teen had a gun, saying, “No guns were found.” (DeMaria confirmed the knife.) Asked by CNN for further comment, DHS did not respond.

The tear-gassed family – January 14

The claims: After two children were hospitalized after being tear-gassed as their family drove near a protest in Minneapolis, DHS suggested their parents were “agitators.” DHS wrote in a post: “It is horrific to see radical agitators bring children to their violent riots.”

The evidence: DHS soon deleted the post, with McLaughlin acknowledging the people were not agitators but instead “victims.”

Rümeysa Öztürk – March 25, 2025

The claims: After the Tufts University PhD student was detained by masked federal agents last spring, McLaughlin told CNN that Rümeysa Öztürk had been found by investigators to be “engaged in activities in support of Hamas, a foreign terrorist organization.”

The evidence: Last month, a newly released State Department memo said the investigators did not find that Öztürk had “made any public statements indicating support for a terrorist organization.” It said DHS found no grounds to remove her for “material support to foreign terrorist organization or terrorist activity.”

Even some Republicans concede DHS has done neither itself, nor the administration, any favors. “The Official Version vs. The Truth!”

I’m done; holla back!

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https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/17/politics/dhs-ice-trump-tricia-mclaughlin