Ken Jennings, the host of “Jeopardy!,” is making headlines, not for his quiz show hosting but for his political commentary on a tragic incident.
On January 7, 2026, a tragic occurrence took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent. She was reversing her Honda Pilot away from federal agents when the incident happened. The incident sparked nationwide outrage, with demands for the disbanding of federal immigration enforcement agencies.
Several public figures were quick to condemn the incident, including the 51-year-old “Jeopardy!” host. Starting January 6, Jennings began expressing his political opinions and reaction to the incident on Bluesky, a social media platform.
On January 7, Jennings continued posting about the incident, sharing and reposting related content. He also addressed the responses to his posts, showing resilience despite several opportunities to step back.
His initial posts included statements like, “America is always like ‘ok, but the NEXT regime change will work,’ like when I ‘cut out carbs’ briefly every January,” followed by “The ‘prosecute the former regime at every level’ candidate has my vote in 2028.”
On Jan. 7, Jennings posted, “It’s been a dark week, but I just saw someone reply to an ‘Abolish ICE’ post with a scoldy Bluesky ‘Uh, try abolish DHS’ and that joy will sustain me for a little while.” He also reposted messages identifying the officer as Jonathan Ross, and later wrote about handling responses to his posts: “I’ve been a-blockin’ and a-mutin’ all afternoon, but I want everyone to know that I never block for this reply, though the universe gives me multiple opportunities every day.”
At the time of the incident, Good was returning from dropping off her six-year-old son at school. She and her partner encountered ICE agents during an immigration enforcement operation.
The officer identified as the shooter, 43-year-old Iraq War veteran Jonathan Ross, fired four shots at Good, hitting her in her head, arm and face as she attempted to drive away. Her vehicle crashed into a parked car seconds later.
Video footage shows Good’s SUV reversing slightly before moving forward, away from the officers. Questions arose when it was revealed that Ross filmed the encounter with his cellphone while holding his weapon. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem claimed that the agent was injured by the vehicle and received medical treatment, but did not provide further details about the sequence of events.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rejected the federal claims after viewing the footage and demanded that ICE leave Minneapolis. Meanwhile, the DHS accused Good of using her vehicle as a weapon. Vice President JD Vance echoed this view, labeling Good’s death “a tragedy of her own making” and alleging, without evidence, that she was part of a broader left-wing network targeting ICE officers.
Witnesses described Good, a U.S. citizen born in Colorado, as an observer looking out for immigrant neighbors. She graduated with an English degree from Old Dominion University in 2020 and was a mother of three. Her six-year-old son’s father died in 2023. Good’s wife stated that she believed in the goodness of the world.
According to her partner, they had stopped to show support for their neighbors when federal agents appeared with firearms. She now faces the task of raising their son
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz criticized the federal intervention and described the shooting as predictable and avoidable. He declared January 9, 2026, a Day of Unity in honor of Renee Nicole Good. President Donald Trump, however, characterized Good as an agitator who ran over the ICE officer.
Protests broke out across the country, with major demonstrations in Los Angeles, New York, Washington, DC, El Paso, and Boston. An online fundraiser collected more than $1.5 million in donations for Good’s family, which will be put in a trust fund.