Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem testified at a contentious, four-hour Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday. Lawmakers pressed her over her controversial “domestic terrorist” comment about two U.S. citizens, who were fatally shot by ICE agents in January in Minnesota, as well as her handling of immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump.

Krisit Noem’s response on the fatal shootings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti

According to NBC News, this marks Noem’s first appearance before the committee since the deaths of Renee Nicole Good on Jan. 7 and Alex Pretti on Jan. 24. While she received split reactions from Democrats and Republicans on immigration policy, Noem defended Trump’s crackdown on immigration and the tactics used by ICE agents nationwide.

Several senators questioned Noem on the shootings of Good and Pretti and why she referred to them as domestic terrorists. She did not take back or apologize for those remarks, but expressed condolences to their families.

“These are tragic situations, and I can’t imagine what these families go through and losing a loved one,” she said.

“These are tragic situations, and I can’t imagine what these families go through and losing a loved one,” she said in response to questioning from Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., per NBC News.

Some Republicans have criticized Kristi Noem and the department’s immigration policies

Noem also stated that she relied on initial information from agents on the ground when she made those comments about Good and Pretti. When asked further about the shootings, she said the FBI was leading an investigation into the killings and that Homeland Security Investigations were also involved.

Most Republicans support the department’s immigration efforts. However, some had further questions about the shootings, U.S. citizens being detained and injured by agents and how much the federal agency spends on immigration campaign ads, per NBC News and BBC.

Per NBC News, “What we’ve seen is innocent people getting detained that turn out are American citizens,” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said, adding that Noem’s leadership “is a disaster.”

How much has DHS spent on immigration campaigns?

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., questioned Noem about a $220 million DHS ad campaign aimed at encouraging undocumented immigrants to “self-deport.” Those campaigns were reportedly tied to Noem, her colleagues and a Republican consulting firm that allegedly received the contract, according to a ProPublica report and the BBC.

“I did not have anything to do with picking those contractors,” Noem told Kennedy, per the BBC.

In Kennedy’s response, he focused on the department’s excessive spending of taxpayers’ money.

“It troubles me,” Kennedy said before sharing his concerns of the agency’s spending, adding that “a fifth to a quarter of a billion dollars in taxpayer money, when we’re scratching for every penny.”

Noem will also testify on Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee about her leadership of the department.