Noem Denies Use of Chemical Agents in Minnesota, Then Backtracks

 https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/18/us/politics/noem-chemical-agents-minnesota.html

Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, denied in a televised interview on Sunday that her department had used pepper spray and similar tactics curtailed by a judicial order issued last week, then backtracked and blamed protesters after being confronted with a video of federal agents deploying such measures against crowds in Minnesota.

But after being pressed on a video that backed up the accounts provided to the court, she changed course. Protesters were to blame for the use of force, she said, adding that federal officers “only use those chemical agents when there’s violence happening and perpetuating.”