Two Democratic former presidents on Sunday condemned the scenes in Minnesota after Alex Pretti was killed this weekend, framing the tragedy as a pivotal moment that calls Americans to “speak up” and take action.
Former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama called Pretti’s death a “heartbreaking tragedy” in a statement.
“It should also be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault,” the Obamas wrote.
The Obamas criticized the “unprecedented tactics” the Department of Homeland Security has employed, saying “people across the country have been rightly outraged by the spectacle of masked ICE recruits and other federal agents acting with impunity and engaging in tactics that seem designed to intimidate, harass, provoke and endanger the residents of a major American city.”
The Obamas said that “rather than trying to impose some semblance of discipline and accountability over the agents they’ve deployed, the President and current administration officials seem eager to escalate the situation, while offering public explanations for the shootings of Mr. Pretti and Renee Good that aren’t informed by any serious investigation — and that appear to be directly contradicted by video evidence.”
An ICE officer shot and killed Good this month in a residential area of Minneapolis.
The Obamas called on every American to “draw inspiration from the wave of peaceful protests in Minneapolis and other parts of the country” and said they hope administration officials change their approach and work with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey “to avert more chaos and achieve legitimate law enforcement goals.”
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said Obama was exploiting the moment to “sow more division.”
“Obama should join President Trump in urging local Democrat leaders — like Walz and Frey — to work with the Trump Administration to remove dangerous criminal illegal aliens from American communities,” Jackson said in a statement. “Instead, they are attacking law enforcement and defending criminal illegal aliens with additional convictions for murder, rape, assault, and more.”
Former President Bill Clinton called the scenes in Minneapolis “horrible” in a statement on social media.
“Over the course of a lifetime, we face only a few moments where the decisions we make and the actions we take will shape our history for years to come. This is one of them,” he wrote.
Clinton said “the people in charge” are lying to the public and telling them “not to believe what we’ve seen with our own eyes.”
“It is up to all of us who believe in the promise of American democracy to stand up, speak out, and show that our nation still belongs to We the People,” he added.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Clinton’s statement.
NBC News has reached out to the offices of former Presidents Joe Biden and George W. Bush for comment.
