Pretti’s death has only further inflamed tensions between protesters, Democratic officials, and federal agents throughout Minnesota. The incident also spurred bipartisan calls in Congress for an investigation and hearings.

“While emotions are no doubt high, a congressional hearing is a place where federal, state, and local community leaders can be heard,” Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI) wrote on X. “I believe Congress can conduct oversight and lead a facts-based discussion.”

Trump has sought to lower tensions, telling the Wall Street Journal he would remove federal immigration agents from Minnesota “at some point.” On Monday, Trump announced he was sending “border czar” Tom Homan to oversee the situation in Minnesota. The president also said he had spoken to Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and the two “seemed to be on a similar wavelength.”

“Nobody in the White House, including President Trump, wants to see people getting hurt or killed in America’s streets,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

Still, the unrest is likely to spill over into Trump’s visit to Iowa on Tuesday, where the president was going to champion his work to lower the cost of living.

“Ending Joe Biden’s economic and affordability disaster has been a Day One priority for President Trump,” a White House official told the Washington Examiner. “The president’s trip out to Iowa will underscore the work that this Administration has already done to raise real wages, cut gas prices, and accelerate economic growth — and what work the Administration will continue doing to keep delivering for the American people.”

Aaron Evans, president of Winning Republican Strategies, said Trump will have no choice but to juggle his handling of the situation in Minnesota with his efforts to improve the economy.

“At the end of the day, he doesn’t really have the luxury of picking one priority over another priority. He’s got to do both,” Evans said. “Ultimately, President Trump’s got to cut through the clutter and make sure that he’s doing what he needs to do to secure our country and to fix the immigration crisis. But he’s also got to use the bully pulpit of the presidency and the megaphone; he’s got to really focus in on the economy.”

Polling suggests that clashes in Minnesota could complicate Trump’s balancing act. A Politico poll showed 49% of the public said Trump’s mass deportation campaign is too aggressive, a sign that the clashes between ICE and protesters could threaten the GOP’s efforts to retain control of both chambers of Congress. Another poll from the New York Times and Siena University showed 61% said ICE tactics have gone too far.

“One of the reasons that the left is doing this is because it takes the White House and the administration off message,” said Gregg Keller, a Republican strategist. “The president has a great economic story to be telling here, but it’s hard to cut through the clutter when people are assaulting police officers and thereby getting shot in Minnesota.”

A Republican close to the White House cast doubt that Democratic attacks against the administration’s immigration enforcement would harm the GOP in this November’s midterm elections.

“I can see exactly what the Democrats are trying to do in terms of electoral politics, but I just don’t see how that is going to be a winning issue in the swing districts that need to decide,” they said.

In Iowa, local news will obviously ask Trump about the Minnesota clashes, said the Republican, “but he’s gonna say, ‘Here’s what else I’m doing. And by the way, all of this chaos in Minnesota is being caused because someone won’t let me into the jails and the courthouses to remove people that are already charged or convicted with crime.’”

But Matt Dole, a Republican strategist, also cautioned the Trump administration to champion the work that has been done to crack down on illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexico southern border.

“The border and what ICE is doing is a huge success story for his presidency and his administration. And so I know he wants to talk about affordability, and he certainly will, and he has every right to and it makes political sense to talk about affordability,” Dole said. “But again, his success on the border is a story that must be told. … We have to own this as a victory, and I think Trump has to understand that as he goes out on the campaign trail.”

SENATE DEMOCRATS GEAR UP TO DERAIL APPROPRIATIONS PASSAGE AFTER FATAL SHOOTING IN MINNEAPOLIS

Senate Democrats, meanwhile, are threatening to shut down the government unless funding for immigration enforcement is stripped out of a must-pass appropriations bill, injecting the Minnesota unrest into broader budget fights on Capitol Hill.

Still, Republicans say Trump plans to keep his Iowa remarks focused squarely on prices, paychecks, and the economy — even as Minnesota follows him on the trail.

Naomi Lim contributed to this report.