It is truly a marvel to watch the party of “Law and Order” do mental gymnastics when actual laws are involved.
Especially when those laws protect citizens from the government.
We are watching a masterclass in hypocrisy unfold in Minneapolis right now.
CNN’s Pamela Brown recently had Texas Republican Representative Pete Sessions on her show.
The topic was the escalating violence involving ICE agents in Minnesota.
Specifically, the killing of 37-year-old Alex Pretti.
This comes just weeks after agents shot Renee Good, another U.S. citizen.
Naturally, the Trump administration rushed to defend ICE.
They claimed Pretti, who was legally armed with a handgun, wanted to “massacre” agents.
But let’s look at the tape.
Footage showed Pretti was simply holding his phone and recording the agents.
They wrestled him to the ground.
One agent appeared to remove the gun from his waistband.
Then another agent suddenly opened fire.
Apparently, holding a smartphone is now a capital offense in the eyes of the MAGAverse.
The “Party of Freedom” Hates Your Rights
Rep. Sessions didn’t seem too concerned about the agents shooting a man recording them.
Instead, he blamed the protesters.
He suggested that following agents and recording them is what led to Pretti’s death.
Pamela Brown, thankfully, wasn’t having it.
She reminded the Congressman that we actually have a Constitution in this country.
She pointed out that people have First, Second, and Fourth Amendment rights.
Brown asked a simple question:
“Are you willing to consider why that might be provocative to people in the community?”
She continued, noting that while violence against law enforcement is wrong, the government is testing boundaries.
“But people do have a First Amendment right, and they do have a Second Amendment right in this country, and they do have a Fourth Amendment right.”
You would think a Texas Republican would love the Second Amendment part, right?
Wrong.
Blame the Immigrants (Even When It’s Irrelevant)
Sessions did what Republicans do best when cornered with facts.
He pivoted to fear-mongering about immigration.
He started ranting about lines of people.
“We watched some 13 or 14 million people come in long lines, and thousands at a time, into this country, knowing they were breaking the law.”
He then complained about New York City spending money to “put these people up.”
Because obviously, an immigration budget dispute justifies shooting an American citizen in Minneapolis.
He even brought up “$9 billion” in fraud.
According to him, the government is just “trying to clear out criminals.”
So, let me get this straight.
A citizen recording the police is now equitable to a massive government theft conspiracy?
The logic is dizzying.
“Cooler Heads” and Domestic Terrorists
Sessions claimed he hoped “cooler heads could prevail.”
He wants a “buffer zone” to keep protesters away from ICE.
Brown immediately pointed out the irony here.
How can heads be cool when the DHS Secretary is calling Pretti a “domestic terrorist”?
Or when Stephen Miller at the White House is calling him an “assassin”?
Brown asked:
“Is that cooler heads prevailing in this administration?”
Sessions gave the classic “both sides” non-answer.
The War on Whistles
Then things got truly absurd.
Sessions actually argued that blowing a whistle is a crime.
“I in no way, once again, think that it’s wise or prudent for hundreds of people to show up with whistles to defer law enforcement. That is a crime in and of itself to get in the way of someone doing their job.”
He tried to keep going.
But Brown shut him down with a civics lesson.
“Congressman, I have to– I’m sorry, I have to– I don’t like to interrupt you, but that’s a First Amendment right.”
She laid it out clearly.
You might not like the noise.
It might be distracting.
But observing law enforcement on public streets is not illegal.
“And if you want to blow a whistle, that might be distracting and it might be considered not great behavior, but it’s protected under the First Amendment, is it not?”
It is terrifying that a sitting Congressman needs a news anchor to explain the Bill of Rights to him.
But that is where we are.
Rights for me, but not for thee.
