Ex-Trump official suggests man fatally shot by federal agents was 'looking for trouble'

[turbinetree]

By Alexander Willis
Published January 24, 2026 2:35 PM ET

Chad Wolf, who briefly served as acting Homeland Security secretary under the first Trump administration, took to Newsmax Saturday to allege, without evidence, that the man fatally shot by federal immigration officers in Minnesota Saturday was “looking for trouble.”

In Minneapolis, federal officers wrestled, beat and ultimately shot 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti, with the incident captured on video by a bystander. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara confirmed their age, that they were a white male, and that they were believed to be “an American citizen.”

The shooting sparked outrage among Minneapolis residents, hundreds of whom clashed with law enforcement at the scene of the incident. Wolf, however, laid blame for the deadly encounter squarely on Pretti, who was accused by the Department of Homeland Security of approaching officers “with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun.”

https://www.rawstory.com/minneapolis-2675022121/

Hey Wolf maybe you should look up about gun laws in Minnesota.................the snow queen bunch may have murdered another human being that was permitted to carry gun............your gang paranoia says a lot ...............the video shows the thugs beating the shit out of the guy because he had a camera..................and then there were shots while he was on the ground getting the shit beat out of him........snow queen Noem team and that Bovino asshole are judge, jury, and executor and to top it all off you support a guy that said that he could stand on 5th avenue and shoot someone and nobody would care, well guess what ..................people do care...........

[SheltieLover]

1. Bullshit

[MagickMuffin]

2. Good Trouble

Sure, recording their illegal activities is now a death sentence.

I can remember when enforcers would shoot to kill and then claim the victim of their murder had a gun in his hand. Only to be proven wrong. It’s legalized murder.

[NYC Liberal]

3. Yet they all defend Kyle Rittenhouse, who actually was "looking for trouble"

[markodochartaigh]

4. When conservatives read the 2nd amendment this is what they read:

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of Republicans to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed".

Also, what Trump said is, "'I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't lose any voters, OK?" Trump remarked at a campaign stop at Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa. "It's, like, incredible.'"
And he personally ramped up federal executions to gin up support among his base at the end of his first term. It probably did excite his supporters, it certainly didn't cause any great amount of alienation. As for murder by proxy, we'll have to wait and see if he loses support.

The circumstances have many differences but Nixon's support after Kent State certainly didn't tank.
"A Gallup poll in the wake of the shootings found situation that 58 percent of Americans blamed the students for the deaths at Kent State, while only 11 percent blamed the National Guard. Means says Nixon saw a political opportunity to consolidate his hold on the “silent majority” and tie Democrats to the unpopular radicals. “In the short-term, Kent State re-energized the antiwar movement. It also radicalized the Democratic Party, which then nominated George McGovern, who loses in a landslide in 1972.”

The whole article is worth a quick read to compare and contrast with today's situation.


https://www.history.com/articles/richard-nixon-kent-state-shootings-response

[markodochartaigh]

5. I don't know if this legal, feasible, or even possible, but

would filming using drones be a good idea?