Florida Republican state Sen. Ileana Garcia, the co-founder of Latinas for Trump, is criticizing President Donald Trump's immigration enforcement strategy, warning it could cost Republicans control of Congress in the midterm elections.
"I do think that he will lose the midterms because of Stephen Miller," Garcia told The New York Times in an interview published Tuesday.
While Garcia said she supports Trump's efforts to close the border, she placed responsibility for what she described as overly aggressive enforcement tactics on Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff and a key architect of immigration policy.
Garcia's remarks follow a deadly confrontation in Minneapolis over the weekend in which federal agents shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti during a protest against the administration's immigration actions. The incident came weeks after an ICE officer fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Good in the city earlier this month.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Pretti "attacked" federal law enforcement, while Miller labeled Pretti "a would-be assassin" who "tried to murder federal law enforcement."
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later sought to distance Trump from those comments, saying Monday that she had not heard the president "characterize Mr. Pretti in that way" and noting the matter remains under investigation.
Garcia sharply rebuked Miller's comments in a post Monday on the social media platform X.
"Distorting, politicizing, slandering – justifying what happened to Alex Pretti contradicts the American values the administration campaigned on," Garcia wrote. "He was neither a domestic terrorist nor an assassin."
"Allowing individuals like Stephen Miller, among others, who represent the government and make hard-line decisions, to make such comments will have long term consequences. ... This is not what I voted for!" she added.
Garcia played a key role in mobilizing Latina voters in support of Trump during his first presidential campaign and later served in the Department of Homeland Security during his administration. In recent years, however, she has become increasingly vocal in her criticism of immigration enforcement tactics, calling some approaches "inhumane."
Her latest comments underscore growing unease among some Republicans over how immigration enforcement is being carried out, as fallout from the Minnesota shootings continues and political observers warn the issue could influence the outcome of November's high-stakes midterm elections.
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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