Evan Vucci via AP Images
The Wall Street Journal took the Trump administration to task in an editorial decrying both the death of Alex Pretti and the reaction to it on Sunday.
The 37-year-old was shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent on Saturday, and the administration reacted by immediately going on offense.
“The officers attempted to disarm this individual, but the armed suspect reacted violently. Fearing for his life and for the lives of his fellow officers around him, an agent fired defensive shots,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem at a Saturday evening press conference. “It looks like a situation where an individual arrived at the scene to inflict maximum damage on individuals and kill law enforcement.”
The claims made by Noem and other officials have been under severe scrutiny, with many arguing that video of the incident contradicts her version of events, including the Journal.
After opening up with an anecdote about President Donald Trump himself extolling the need for “heart” in immigration enforcement, the influential center-right newspaper observed that “Fifteen months later in Minneapolis, there isn’t much heart in Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Saturday shooting of Alex Pretti, as he lay on the ground surrounded by ICE agents, is the worst incident to date in what is becoming a moral and political debacle for the Trump Presidency.”
“Videos of an event aren’t always definitive, but this is how it looks to us. Pretti attempted, foolishly, to assist a woman who had been pepper-sprayed by agents. Multiple agents then tackled Pretti, and he had a phone in one hand as he lay on the ground. An agent discovered a concealed gun on Pretti, and disarmed him. An agent then shot Pretti, and multiple shots followed,” continued the Journal. “The Trump Administration spin on this simply isn’t believable. Stephen Miller, the political architect of the mass deportation policy, called Pretti a ‘domestic terrorist.’ He was a nurse without a criminal record.”
“Whether he likes it or not, most of the burden now lies with Mr. Trump as the President who controls ICE. He would be wise to pause ICE enforcement in the Twin Cities to ease tensions and consider a less provocative strategy. Yes, many on the left would conclude that their civil disobedience has paid off. But Mr. Trump can still pursue enforcement with a smaller force and a strategy aimed at criminals, not at hotel maids and gardeners,” concluded the editorial. “Americans don’t want law enforcement shooting people in the street or arresting five-year-old boys. The President who said you have to have a heart in enforcement ought to show some.”
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