A pair of Senate Republicans are demanding that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem lose her job in the wake of a pair of fatal shootings in the midst of the agency’s immigration operations in Minnesota. 

Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Thom Tillis, R-N.C., are no strangers to being critical of the Trump administration, and have again broken from their party in calling for Noem to either step aside or be fired by President Donald Trump. 

They join several Senate Democrats who have demanded accountability for the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good in the midst of DHS’ immigration operations in Minneapolis, Minn. It also comes as Senate Democrats are threatening to shut the government down in their bid to sideline the DHS funding bill. 

When pressed on whether Noem should resign, Murkowski noted that she voted for her confirmation last year.

‘I think the President needs to look at who he has in place as the Secretary of Homeland Security. I would not support her again, and I think it probably is time for her to step down,’ she said. 

Trump on Tuesday said that Noem was doing a ‘very good job.’ When asked if she would be stepping down, he said ‘no.’ 

Tillis, who has made a habit of going after Trump officials in the last several months and accusing them of giving the president bad policy advice, was more biting in his assessment of Noem’s performance, and extended that breakdown to White House Deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, who similarly accused Pretti of being a domestic terrorist. 

He charged that ‘people like Noem are squandering’ Trump’s ability to codify policy and open the door to a discussion on immigration reform — something both sides of the aisle have desired for some time. 

‘I don’t know if it’s lost yet, but if it is an opportunity lost, I put it squarely on the shoulders of people like Noem and Stephen Miller,’ Tillis said. ‘Those two people told the president, before they even had any incident report whatsoever, that the person who died was a terrorist. I mean, that is amateur hour at its worst.’

When asked about Noem’s choice to label Pretti as a domestic terrorist, Murkowski said that the DHS head has an ‘obligation to control these situations that are under her jurisdiction, and she has not done so.’ 

Murkowski contended that accountability in the situation goes all the way to the top rung of leadership. 

‘I think you have a secretary right now who needs to be accountable to to the chaos and some of the tragedy that we have seen,’ Murkowski said. 

And Tillis, when asked if Noem should be removed from her position, said ‘100%,’ but stopped short of supporting impeachment. 

‘I’m not going to get into impeachment,’ Tillis said. ‘I think it should be a management decision. She needs to go.’

Fox News Digital reached out to DHS.

Sen. Ted Cruz called for the U.S. to arm Iranian protesters Tuesday as unrest continues inside the nation and Iran-backed militias issued threats against Washington.

‘We should be arming the protesters in Iran. NOW,’ Cruz wrote in a post on X.

‘For the Iranian people to overthrow the Ayatollah — a tyrant who routinely chants ‘death to America’ — would make America much, much safer,’ the Texas Republican added.

Cruz was responding to another post from Tehran Bureau, which cited a source inside Iran detailing what was described as a rapidly deteriorating situation on the ground as security forces continued to crack down on demonstrations.

‘From trusted source in Tehran: Tell all of your friends [abroad] — everyone you know: there is absolutely nothing else we can do here inside Iran,’ the post read.

‘They are killing people in such ways, they’ve descended upon people so brutally, they’re attacking us in such ways… We’ve lost so many lives that no one dares go out anymore. They shoot directly with bullets. They kill outright. And even after killing, they come and behead you, and do countless other violent things to you,’ it continued.

‘Going out into the streets is literally suicide. It’s not about bravery anymore. It’s madness. You go out and they shoot you point-blank. They don’t even ask why you came. They just kill you,’ the post continued. ‘There is absolutely no way for us to gather unless we had weapons, unless we were armed like them. Otherwise they have weapons everywhere.’

According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency, activist groups estimate that more than 6,000 people have been killed in Iran, with additional cases still under review.

The protests began in late December amid widespread anger over economic hardship, political repression and corruption, according to reports.

Cruz’s post came after armed militias aligned with Iran warned the U.S. they would retaliate against any American attack on the Islamic Republic, as the Trump administration moved forces into the region.

Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq said it was prepared for ‘total war’ if the U.S. attacked Iran, according to The Associated Press.

Abu Hussein al-Hamidawi, the group’s leader, said the ‘enemies’ of the Islamic Republic would face ‘the bitterest forms of death.’

‘You will taste every form of deadly suffering, nothing of you will remain in our region, and we will strike terror in your hearts,’ the statement read.

Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthis also threatened to restart attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, releasing a video Monday showing a ship engulfed in flames, captioned: ‘Soon,’ The Associated Press reported.

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, President Donald Trump said Iran appeared to be seeking negotiations with the U.S. amid the growing military buildup, telling Axios, ‘They want to make a deal. I know so. They called on numerous occasions. They want to talk.’

The USS Abraham Lincoln arrived in the Middle East on Monday as unrest inside Iran continued to escalate.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Sen. Ted Cruz for comment.

The White House appears to be rejecting Democrats’ demands in the burgeoning government funding fight, as the chances of a partial shutdown grow larger by the day.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is threatening that Democrats will vote against the massive federal spending bill set to get a vote this week unless funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is stripped out and renegotiated.

Republicans have already signaled they’re not inclined to do so, which White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reaffirmed during her Monday afternoon press conference.

Leavitt also pointed out that all the bills wrapped into the massive spending package are the product of bipartisan negotiations between the House and Senate — meaning Democrats already had a say in the legislation they are now rejecting.

‘At this point, the White House supports the bipartisan work that was done to advance the bipartisan appropriations package, and we want to see that passed,’ President Donald Trump’s spokeswoman said. 

‘Policy discussions on immigration in Minnesota are happening. Look, the president is leading those discussions, as evidenced by his correspondence with Governor Walz this morning. But that should not be at the expense of government funding for the American people.’

Democrats are coming out against the DHS funding bill en masse in the wake of another deadly federal law enforcement-involved shooting in Minneapolis. A Border Patrol agent shot Alex Pretti, a nurse who worked with veterans at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center, during a wider protest against Trump’s immigration crackdown in the city.

Both Republicans and Democrats have called for investigations into the fatal encounter, but only Democrats are threatening to put federal funding at risk.

Leavitt pointed out that the DHS funding portion would also allocate dollars to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), not just the Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spending that Democrats object to.

‘We are in the midst of the storm that took place over the weekend, and many Americans are still being impacted by that. So we absolutely do not want to see that funding lapse,’ she said. ‘We want the Senate to move forward with passing the bipartisan appropriations package that was negotiated on a bipartisan basis.’

The legislation negotiated between Republicans and Democrats already includes guardrails for ICE, including mandating body-worn cameras and more training on public engagement and de-escalation.

But Pretti’s killing and DHS’s handling of it infuriated Democrats — at least several of whom will be needed to meet the Senate’s 60-vote threshold to advance the legislation.

Senate Republicans had wanted to pass the package as early as Thursday and send it to Trump’s desk just before the Jan. 30 shutdown deadline.

Senate Democrats held a private, caucus-wide call on the matter on Sunday, after which a source familiar told Fox News Digital that Schumer’s plan was to reject any DHS bill without several reforms, but that the broader, five-bill funding package could move ahead. 

‘Basically, DHS is the problem and should be split from the package,’ they said.

But with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., taking the first procedural step to set up this week’s vote on the larger package on Monday, Democrats’ prospects of strong-arming the GOP are thin.

Even if Senate Democrats did prevail, it’s virtually guaranteed that Congress would miss the Friday shutdown deadline at this point.

Any changes to the spending package would require it to return to the House to be considered again, despite it passing the lower chamber last week.

But a House GOP leadership source told Fox News Digital of that prospect on Saturday, ‘We passed all 12 bills over to the Senate, and they still have six in their possession that they need to pass to the president. We have no plan to come back next week.’

Fox News Digital reached out to Schumer’s office for a response.

A top Senate Republican is demanding that the heads of several immigration-focused units at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) testify publicly before the Senate. 

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., called on the heads of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigrations Services (USCIS) to come before his panel, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, next month. 

In three separate letters to acting ICE Director Todd Lyons, CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott and USCIS Director Joseph Edlow, Paul noted that DHS had received ‘an exceptional amount of funding to secure our borders and enforce our immigration laws.’

‘Congress has an obligation to conduct oversight of those tax dollars and ensure the funding is used to accomplish the mission, provide proper support for our law enforcement, and, most importantly, protect the American people,’ Paul wrote.

‘I write to request your testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs at an open hearing by February 12, 2026,’ he continued. ‘Please provide your availability to appear before the Committee by the close of business on January 28, 2026.’

Paul’s request comes on the heels of the second fatal shooting involving a border patrol agent and U.S. citizen in the last month since the Trump administration ordered DHS to enter Minnesota. 

Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good were both fatally shot by border patrol agents, which has prompted pushback from Senate Democrats and some Republicans on the Trump administration’s activity in the state. 

But Paul’s request is more focused on the funding element of the situation.

Senate Democrats are gearing up to block the upcoming DHS funding bill, which could thrust the government into another shutdown. And Paul wants to know how the billion already allocated to the agency, likely through President Donald Trump’s ‘one, big beautiful bill,’ are being used. 

Paul’s request also comes as DHS Secretary Kristi Noem is set to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee in early March after several months of not responding to a pair of requests from Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.

Russia criticized the U.S.’ proposed Golden Dome missile defense system Monday, warning it could destabilize global nuclear deterrence, according to reports.

According to TASS, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev told Kommersant newspaper that the ambitious project is extremely ‘provocative.’

‘Problems in the strategic sphere resulting from destabilizing U.S. actions only continue to grow. It is enough to recall the highly provocative anti-missile project ‘Golden Dome for America,’’ he said, TASS reported.

‘It fundamentally contradicts the assertion of the inseparable interrelationship between offensive and defensive strategic arms, which, by the way, was enshrined in the preamble of New START,’ Medvedev added, citing the treaty that protects U.S. national security by placing limits on Russia’s deployed intercontinental nuclear weapons.

A defense expert says Russia’s reaction underscores the Golden Dome’s power as a geopolitical signal to the world.

‘Even before it has been built, the dome is military focused and politically focused and an incredible bargaining chip with U.S. adversaries,’ defense expert Cameron Chell told Fox News Digital.

‘In this case, it is Russia and China in particular, in terms of how the U.S. postures for negotiating peace terms, treaty terms and whether the U.S. will be negating their already existing arsenal,’ the Draganfly CEO claimed.

The Golden Dome is a long-term missile defense concept aimed at protecting North America from ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missile threats.

Chell spoke after the Pentagon released its National Defense Strategy on Jan. 23, outlining a renewed focus on homeland defense, expanded missile defense, counter-drone systems, cyber capabilities and long-range strike forces.

The planned Golden Dome missile defense shield is designed to defeat ‘large missile barrages and other advanced aerial attacks,’ the strategy said, while also hardening military and key civilian infrastructure against cyber strikes as Russia and China continue expanding their hypersonic weapons programs.

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, China has also pushed back against the Golden Dome missile defense initiative, accusing Washington of undermining global strategic stability and risking the weaponization of outer space.

‘There’s big value in the talk and the build-out of Golden Dome, even long before it gets built, not to mention the research and technology development that comes out of it,’ Chell said.

‘The posturing and the economic benefits of building something like this are also factored into why the dome is so important.’

The project’s sheer scale is expected to drive its strategic impact but could also come with an enormous price tag.

‘The dome is going to take trillions to build and is the largest military project, probably the largest engineering and technology project ever attempted, so there are going to be challenges getting it done,’ Chell explained.

‘The U.S. has ten years of planning, including where they are going to have communication links, radar systems, and early warning systems.’ That planning, Chell noted, is shifting focus north.

‘In order to protect the U.S., you want to take things down before they get over the top of the country,’ Chell said.

‘Places like Canada, or even further north, become the dropping ground. You want to get these threats as soon as possible.’

Canada and Greenland are viewed by U.S. defense planners as critical for radar coverage, space tracking and early-warning infrastructure.

‘The idea is something being shot down from space, but to do that you need very detailed landscape data of the entire North and you need access to the North,’ Chell said.

President Trump has long argued the U.S. must control Greenland for national security reasons, citing its strategic Arctic location and natural resources.

‘There needs to be infrastructure and oversight in the far north, in Canada, in Greenland, and places like that,’ Chell said. ‘All that planning has to be done well ahead of time, before we have anything operational.’

Chell also pointed to the potential role of drones in supporting the Golden Dome’s broader mission.

‘Drones could be part of informing the Golden Dome as reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence tools,’ he said, adding that the ‘entire military complex is integrated.’

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Department of War for comment.