First Lady Melania Trump has made the rare decision to speak out on current events in the wake of the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti at the hands of ICE and Border Patrol agents at the weekend.
Pretti was pepper-sprayed, restrained, and then shot dead in Minnesota on Saturday, January 7, less than a month after the death of Renee Good in similarly shocking circumstances.
The subsequent backlash has been fierce and widespread, with multiple video angles appearing to counter the initial claim made by the Department of Homeland Security implying that Pretti had been a credible threat to ICE agents at the scene. While Pretti did have a firearm (one that he reportedly had a permit to carry), the gun remained holstered at all times, until one of the officers took it from him. It was after the 37-year-old had been disarmed that he was shot dead.
Nevertheless, the likes of White House advisor Stephen Miller and former CBP commander Gregory Bovino painted Pretti as a “domestic terrorist” (as was done to Renee Good in the wake of her tragic shooting).
The widespread uproar following Pretti’s death led the White House to seemingly backtrack on the initial stance that the ICU nurse’s demise was essentially his own fault.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called Pretti’s death a “tragedy”, while President Donald Trump said yesterday that his administration would be reviewing the shooting.
Melania Trump has absolutely not made a point of making her voice heard where matters of state are concerned, but the FLOTUS spoke on Fox & Friends this week to call for unity in the U.S.
“We need to unify. I’m calling for unity I know my husband the president had a great call yesterday with the governor and the mayor and they’re working together to make it peaceful and without riots,” she said.
She finished by saying: “I’m against violence, so if you protest, protest in peace.”
Just what the near future holds for the city of Minneapolis and the state of Minnesota remains to be seen, but Trump yesterday revealed he was sending in his so-dubbed “border tsar” Tom Homan. Homan will be charged with overseeing the operation – nicknamed Operation Metro Surge – and reporting directly to Trump himself.
The family of Alex Pretti, meanwhile, angrily kicked back at what they labeled lies being told by the Trump administration concerning their son.
In a heartbroken statement, they said: “Alex wanted to make a difference in this world. Unfortunately, he will not be with us to see his impact. I do not throw around the hero term lightly. However, his last thought and act was to protect a woman.
“The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs.
“He has his phone in his right hand, and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down, all while being pepper-sprayed.”
