Outrage over the killing of Alex Pretti didn’t stay confined to the usual political corners. It jumped the fence. Athletes and influencers, people who normally avoid anything that smells like politics, started weighing in. Cable news ran the video on loop, dissecting every frame. Even the NRA felt compelled to issue a statement urging “responsible public voices” to wait for a full investigation and not demonize law abiding citizens.

You know it’s bad when you’ve lost the NRA.

ICE killed the wrong human being. And Alex Pretti has proven nearly impossible to caricature or villainize. Millions of Americans watched that video and came to the same conclusion. This was an upstanding person trying to help someone else, who was unjustly executed.

That’s why the more principled Republicans started breaking cover.

Bill Cassidy said, “The credibility of ICE and DHS are at stake.”

David McCormick said, “We need a full investigation into the tragedy in Minneapolis. We need all the facts.”

John Curtis said, “I disagree with Secretary Noem’s premature DHS response, which came before all the facts were known and weakened confidence.”

Lisa Murkowski said, “The tragedy and chaos the country is witnessing in Minneapolis is shocking . . . a comprehensive, independent investigation of the shooting must be conducted . . .”

This is the crew you watch if you want to know whether Trump is losing moderate Republicans.

Trump clearly got the message. The first scapegoat was Greg Bovino. The Border Patrol chief lost his commander at large role and was pulled out of Minneapolis. Democrats now have their sights set on DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, who doesn’t exactly have a deep bench of friends in Washington. What happens to the actual agent who shot Alex Pretti will take time.

Trump called Tim Walz and Jacob Frey. He posted a more conciliatory message on Truth Social. He dispatched Border Czar Tom Homan to take over operations in Minneapolis, presumably to dial down the approach.

It’s not going to be enough.

Democrats are now looking at the end of January shutdown as leverage. Republicans are rapidly losing public confidence on immigration, an issue they used to dominate. There is also serious talk of impeaching Kristi Noem.

The real flashpoint, in my view, is whether Noem keeps her job.

Trump will hate showing that level of weakness, axing his DHS Secretary who has been one of his most dogged messengers. But Noem has rubbed a lot of people inside the administration the wrong way, and she is the most visible scapegoat, especially because of her reflexive defenses of ICE.

About Pretti, she said he “committed an act of domestic terrorism,” that he “approached” agents while “brandishing” a 9mm handgun, and that he was carrying “dozens of rounds of ammunition to inflict maximum damage on individuals and to kill law enforcement.”

Anyone who watched the video knows this is nonsense.

We all know who Alex Pretti was. A selfless nurse who died trying to help others.

The administration is losing this one because people still believe their own eyes.

And honestly, that’s the part that gives me a little hope.

Let’s turn down the temperature in this country. Let’s reduce the polarization that is tearing at everything.

People saw what happened. And they’re not buying the spin.