BREAKING: Barack and Michelle Obama release a powerful statement on the murder of innocent nurse Alex Pretti, providing much-needed leadership in this dark moment. Imagine if these two were still in the White House…

“The killing of Alex Pretti is a heartbreaking tragedy. 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,” they stated.

“Federal law enforcement and immigration agents have a tough job. But Americans expect them to carry out their duties in a lawful, accountable way, and to work with, rather than against, state and local officials to ensure public safety.”

“That’s not what we’re seeing in Minnesota. In fact, we’re seeing the opposite,” they continued.

“For weeks now, 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.

These unprecedented tactics—which even the former top lawyer of the Department of Homeland Security in the first Trump administration has characterized as embarrassing, lawless and cruel—have now resulted in the fatal shootings of two U.S citizens.”

“And yet 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.”

“This has to stop. I would hope that after this most recent tragedy, administration officials will reconsider their approach, and start finding ways to work constructively with Governor Walz and Mayor Frey as well as state and local police to avert more chaos and achieve legitimate law enforcement goals.”

“In the meantime, every American should support and draw inspiration from the wave of peaceful protests in Minneapolis and other parts of the country.

They are a timely reminder that ultimately it’s up to each of us as citizens to speak out against injustice, protect our basic freedoms, and hold our government accountable.”

Contrast this level-headed, compassionate statement to the deranged rhetoric that we’ve been hearing from the Trump administration.

Stephen Miller has absurdly smeared Pretti as a “domestic terrorist” and Kristi Noem falsely accused him of planning to “massacre” law enforcement.

Meanwhile, Trump has implied that the killing was justified because he was carrying a firearm, despite him having a legal permit to carry it.

It cannot be stressed enough how much Trump is personally responsible for Alex’s Pretti murder. He flooded our streets with masked, anonymous, poorly trained, heavily armed sadists and sent a clear signal to them that they’re above the law.

Unless these fascist monsters are removed from our cities, it’s only a matter of time before tragedy strikes again.

To put the matter in its starkest terms, Alex Pretti would still be alive if a Democrat were president.