How bystander video and newsroom analysis undercut the White House narrative on Alex Pretti

An interesting scene is playing out at the White House after the latest shooting death of a protester in Minneapolis.

In the minutes and hours and days after ICU nurse Alex Pretti was shot 10 times and killed by Border Patrol agents on Saturday, many inside the Trump administration immediately pointed fingers at Pretti. They said he was “brandishing” a gun. They called him a “domestic terrorist.” They said he meant to “massacre law enforcement.”

Some conservative media outlets ran with that storyline.

None of these statements were rooted in truth. They came from officials such as Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino. Pretti was also criticized by FBI director Kash Patel and Trump deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has placed the blame on Democratic politicians in Minnesota.