The killing of Alex Pretti after an encounter with federal immigration officers Saturday in Minneapolis spurred notable tension with the GOP’s long-standing support for gun rights. Officials say Pretti was armed, but no bystander videos that have surfaced so far appear to show him holding a weapon. The Minneapolis police chief said Pretti had a permit to carry a gun.
Yet administration officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, have questioned why he was armed. Speaking on ABC’s “This Week” Bessent said that when he has attended protests, “I didn’t bring a gun. I brought a billboard.”
Such comments were notable for a party where support for the Second Amendment’s protection of gun ownership is foundational. Indeed, many in the GOP, including President Donald Trump, lifted Kyle Rittenhouse into prominence when the then-17-year-old former police youth cadet shot three men, killing two of them, during a 2020 protest in Wisconsin against police brutality. He was acquitted of all charges after testifying that he acted in self defense.
In the wake of Pretti’s killing, gun rights advocates quickly noted that it is legal to carry firearms during protests.
“Every peaceable Minnesotan has the right to keep and bear arms — including while attending protests, acting as observers, or exercising their First Amendment rights,” the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus said in a statement. “These rights do not disappear when someone is lawfully armed.”
In a social media post, the National Rifle Association said “responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens.”
That was in response to a social media post by Bill Essayli, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California based in Los Angeles. The Central District covers the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura.
“If you approach law enforcement with a gun, there is a high likelihood they will be legally justified in shooting you. Don’t do it!” Essayli wrote on X.
The NRA response also said: “This sentiment from the First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California is dangerous and wrong.”
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who is often critical of the White House, said “carrying a firearm is not a death sentence.”
“It’s a Constitutionally protected God-given right,” he said, “and if you don’t understand this you have no business in law enforcement or government.
The second-ranking Justice Department official said he was aware of reports that Pretti was lawfully armed.
“There’s nothing wrong with anybody lawfully carrying firearms,” Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on “Meet the Press” on NBC. “But just make no mistake about it, this was an incredibly split-second decision that had to be made by ICE officers.”
The Los Angeles Daily News contributed to this story.
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