Rants by Mac: No Guns Allowed? Really??

After I.C.E. agents killed Alex Pretti last week, the Trump administration wasted no time doing what it does best: coordinating its talking points and labeling Pretti a domestic terrorist. Donald Trump and his loyal-no-matter-what team hit the cameras to spin the event with each teammate parroting how Pretti should never have carried his legal, licensed firearm to a peaceful protest.

Let’s look:

President Donald Trump:

·         “You can’t have guns. You can’t walk in with guns. You can’t do that.”

·         And later, “I don’t like that he had a gun. I don’t like that he had two fully loaded magazines.”

FBI Director Kash Patel:

·        “You cannot bring a firearm, loaded, with multiple magazines to any sort of protest that you want. It’s that simple.”

·        Next interview, “No one who wants to be peaceful shows up at a protest with a firearm that is loaded with two full magazines.”

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem

·         “I don’t know of any peaceful protester that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign.” She added that Pretti “brandished” a gun and “attacked” federal officers. Multiple videos showed that he did neither.

Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff

·         referred to Pretti as “an assassin” who “tried to murder federal agents.”

Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ)

·        “Don’t let the left kid you with this, that this is just a normal protest. Peaceful protesters don’t have nine-millimeter weapons with two extra magazines.”

Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino publicly described Pretti’s firearm possession as indicative of violent intent, claiming he “wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.”
·        “The victims are the Border Patrol agents.”

·        “You cannot bring a firearm, loaded, with multiple magazines to any sort of protest that you want. It’s that simple. You don’t have that right to break the law and incite violence.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (my personal favorite) in an interview with Jonathon Karl

·         “Have you been to a protest? I’ve been to a protest. Guess what? I didn’t bring a gun. I brought a billboard.” A billboard, Scott? Why do they want this guy on TV?

Readers here, responding to last week’s column, “Time for a Re-write,” on WTVB’s Facebook page

·         “He went to a Riot with a Gun.”

·         “Who knows what he was intending to do with a loaded gun and 2 full magazines?”

They all obviously got the same message to spin. I know some people hate when I point out hypocrisy in our political leaders, and I know Americans have short memories, so we’ll forget this hypocrisy when the next crisis hits (seemingly daily, or hourly), but come on; there is just so much of it.

While I expect to hear screams of “TDS,” I have to ask, are our MAGA leaders now saying that guns are the problem? That we shouldn’t bring guns to public events? That armed people are problematic? That Pretti stepped over a line? Is there a line?

As fascinating as it is to listen to these folks twist themselves into knots trying to demonize the Veteran’s Hospital ICU nurse by suggesting there should be limits to his Second Amendment rights, it sure seems to step right up to that line.

After years of shouting “shall not be infringed” we now hear, whispers of “well, not like that.”

If the administration wants to argue for gun restrictions at protests, fine. Let’s have that debate openly, honestly, and without body bags.

First, let me remind you of some recent past rallies, in pictures.

But let’s not kid ourselves that this is about principle. This is about convenience; it’s about fitting the narrative after the fact. It is a reminder of our hypocrisy. But we’ll forget all that by tomorrow.

Curt MacRae is a resident of Coldwater, MI and publishes opinion columns regularly.

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