When the Government Lies About What You Can See

37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti was filming federal immigration agents on his phone when they pepper-sprayed, tackled, and shot him multiple times on a Minneapolis street. The entire incident was captured on video by multiple bystanders. Yet within hours, top government officials were telling a completely different story.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called Pretti a "domestic terrorist" who had "attacked" federal agents. FBI Director Kash Patel repeated the attack claim. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche argued that shouting with "a phone right up to ICE's face" meant Pretti wasn't protesting peacefully. Trump aide Stephen Miller labeled him an "assassin."

None of this matches what the videos show. But that may be precisely the point.

The Mechanics of Institutional Lying

What happened in Minneapolis represents something more systematic than typical post-incident spin. The speed and coordination of false statements suggest a deliberate strategy: flood the information space with official lies before facts can take hold.

This approach has been tested before. Earlier this month, when an ICE agent killed Renee Good, similar patterns emerged. Officials immediately blamed Good for her own death, despite questions about the circumstances. When the FBI tried to investigate, Deputy Attorney General Blanche—formerly Trump's personal lawyer—blocked a civil rights inquiry and instead sought a warrant to investigate the dead woman for potential crimes.

The warrant was so legally baseless that a federal magistrate rejected it, noting the obvious: dead people cannot be criminal suspects. An FBI agent reportedly resigned after being pressured to abandon the civil rights investigation.

Beyond Qualified Immunity

Vice President Vance initially claimed federal agents have "absolute immunity" for their actions—a legal doctrine that doesn't exist. While law enforcement officers do have qualified immunity protection, it's limited and doesn't cover clear constitutional violations.

But Vance's overreach reveals the administration's broader theory: federal agents acting in service of executive priorities should face no meaningful accountability, regardless of what they do or how clearly it's documented.

This philosophy extends beyond immigration enforcement. The president has argued that investigations into his own conduct—even for documented offenses like retaining classified documents—are inherently improper. He's suggested that anyone who assists him, from aides to January 6 rioters, deserves protection from consequences.

The Breakdown of Investigative Systems

Perhaps most troubling is how federal agencies are blocking their own accountability mechanisms. In Minneapolis, federal agents refused to provide basic information to local police and initially prevented Minnesota's criminal investigation bureau from accessing the crime scene. State authorities had to obtain a court order just to preserve evidence.

When federal agencies won't investigate themselves and actively obstruct outside investigations, what accountability remains? State and local agencies lack the resources and legal authority to effectively investigate federal agents. Independent oversight bodies have limited power when the executive branch refuses to cooperate.

The result is a perfect storm: federal agents operating with effective impunity, backed by officials willing to lie about documented events, within a system designed to prevent external accountability.

The International Dimension

Foreign observers watching American federal agents kill peaceful protesters while officials lie about video evidence aren't seeing an aberration—they're seeing a system working as currently designed. The same executive power that claims authority to act without congressional oversight or judicial review domestically operates similarly in international affairs.

When democratic institutions fail to constrain executive power at home, it signals to both domestic actors and international partners that institutional norms are negotiable. The message to federal agents is clear: act boldly, knowing protection will come from above.