The Trump administration was showing visible cracks on Monday as the fallout grew over the Minneapolis ICE shooting of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti. Internal divisions have reportedly sharpened, with top officials increasingly pointing fingers over how the situation has been handled and who should take the blame.
President Donald Trump’s chief of staff Susie Wiles and White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller have reportedly turned against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and longtime Trump ally Corey Lewandowski.
Miller, who is widely seen as the architect of the administration’s hard line immigration agenda, has reportedly been especially vocal in his frustration. Lewandowski and Noem have also been the subject of multiple reports about a not-so-secret personal relationship, though neither has addressed the claims publicly.
Senior leadership inside the administration has begun questioning Noem’s judgment, particularly her decision to put Customs and Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino in charge as the public face of the administration’s immigration operations. Several of Bovino’s earlier moves were already drawing concern before Pretti’s killing shocked the country and intensified scrutiny.
“According to two senior officials, Miller is furious that Bovino, 55, and his hardcore ‘turn and burn’ tactics were chosen to become the focal point of the nationwide blitz,” The Beast reported. Miller has placed the blame for that decision squarely on Noem and Lewandowski, according to sources who spoke with The Daily Beast.
“Bovino is Corey’s guy,” one source told The Beast, explaining that this was why Bovino publicly backed Noem’s unfounded claims that Pretti was responsible for his own death. Another insider said it was a mistake to follow Lewandowski’s advice to elevate Bovino and Border Patrol leaders as the faces of the administration’s immigration mission, calling it “a miscalculation on Lewandowski’s part that led to declining support.”
Those internal disagreements have now spilled into broader tension at the top of the administration. The Daily Beast reported that the situation has led to open division among senior officials who once appeared aligned in public. What began as quiet frustration has reportedly grown into something harder to contain as criticism mounts both inside and outside the White House.
“The result has seen a splintering among the Trump administration’s senior leadership,” according to a report. “While Wiles, 68, simply ‘doesn’t like’ Noem, Miller now views Noem, Lewandowski, and Bovino as a ‘liability,’ the official said.”
The infighting comes at a moment when the administration is already facing intense backlash over the shooting of Pretti and the broader conduct of immigration enforcement. For many Americans, the case has become a flashpoint that raises deeper questions about accountability, leadership, and the tone being set from the top. Inside the White House, those same questions now appear to be fueling distrust and frustration among the people tasked with carrying out the president’s agenda.
While the administration has not publicly acknowledged the internal tensions, the reporting from The Daily Beast paints a picture of a team under strain, with once close allies now questioning each other’s competence and motives. As the political pressure continues to build, the divisions are likely to become harder to hide, especially with more attention focused on Noem, Lewandowski, and the decisions that led to Bovino’s prominent role.