1 min read

No.

News service reporting shows no evidence that President Donald Trump has repeatedly referred to those protesting against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as “domestic terrorists.” He has, however, described them as “Leftwing Agitators” and “agitators and insurrectionists” and shared numerous social media posts criticizing them.

Other members of Trump’s administration have specifically described anti-ICE protesters as “domestic terrorists.” For example, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called Minneapolis protester Alex Pretti a “domestic terrorist” after he was shot and killed Saturday by U.S. Border Patrol agents.

Similarly, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller posted on social media, without offering any evidence, that Pretti was “an assassin” who “tried to murder federal agents,” The Associated Press reported.

Videos of Saturday’s killing verified by Reuters show Pretti, 37, holding a phone, not a gun, as he tries to help other protesters who had been pushed to the ground by agents.

The Maine Trust for Local News partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.

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