Lawmakers sparred with witnesses on Thursday during another combative hearing on Capitol Hill.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said the goal of the hearing was to restore public trust in Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
But early on, it became Republican attacks against Minnesota's Attorney General Keith Ellison, including from Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), who suggested Ellison had "encouraged" the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
"A tragedy was going to happen and you encouraged it, and you ought to feel damn guilty about it," Sen. Johnson said.
Ellison rejected the accusation and defended Minnesota's cooperation with ICE.
Later, Sen. Paul and Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) questioned federal immigration officials about the moments leading up to Pretti's death.
"I don't think, as terrible as this is, it's a crime," said Sen. Paul about the encounter that ended in Pretti's killing. "I think it's terrible police work, but there has to ultimately be repercussions."
DHS FUNDING LATEST | Congress is set to leave town without funding DHS, making a partial government shutdown likely
The Congressional hearing was the latest that put a spotlight on the Trump administration's immigration enforcement actions, and took place with lawmakers still in conflict over future funding for ICE's parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security.
Lawmakers on Thursday failed to reach a funding agreement for DHS, setting up a partial government shutdown that would take effect on Friday night at midnight.
Congress has not set any more votes on the matter for this week and is scheduled to leave Washington for the next week.
Democrats have said they won't sign off on a budget unless a list of reforms are met.
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