Majority of Americans say ICE agent’s shooting of Good was unjustified and inappropriate; ICE making cities less safe
Recent polls have shed light on the opinions of Americans regarding the Trump administration’s defense of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent involved in the fatal shooting of Minneapolis woman Renee Good. According to a Quinnipiac University poll, 53% of registered voters believe the shooting of Good was not justified, while 35% think it was justified, with 12% having no opinion. The majority of Democrats and independents view the shooting as unjustified, while most Republicans believe it was justified.
Similarly, a CNN poll found that 56% of Americans consider the shooting to be an inappropriate use of force, with only 26% believing it was appropriate. Additionally, 51% of respondents feel that the shooting highlights larger issues within ICE’s operations. The poll also revealed that 51% of Americans think ICE enforcement actions make cities less safe, while 31% believe they make cities safer.
There is a clear partisan divide on this issue, with 82% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents feeling that ICE enforcement makes cities less safe, compared to 67% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who believe it makes cities safer.
Concerns were also raised about crackdowns on those protesting deportations, with 47% of Americans expressing worry about this compared to 37% concerned about protests escalating out of control.
Moreover, trust in the federal government to conduct a fair and thorough investigation into the Minneapolis shooting is low, with 62% of respondents indicating they have little to no trust in the government. Only 17% expressed a high level of trust in the government’s investigative abilities. The majority of U.S. voters have viewed the video of Good being shot by the ICE agent.
In terms of approval ratings, the Quinnipiac poll found that 57% of voters disapprove of how ICE is enforcing immigration laws, while 40% approve. Similarly, 58% of respondents disapprove of Trump’s handling of immigration, with 42% approving. The majority of Americans (52%) believe that Trump’s efforts to deport immigrants living in the U.S. illegally have gone too far.
Regarding Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the CNN poll indicated that 61% of Americans disapprove of her job performance, with only 38% approving. This sentiment was echoed in the Quinnipiac poll, which showed more respondents voicing no opinion (36% approved, 52% disapproved).
Both polls were conducted in January, with the Quinnipiac poll surveying 1,133 registered voters and the CNN poll interviewing 1,209 U.S. adults, each with a margin of error of around +/- 3%.
