Fox News has changed its narrative over the murder of Alex Pretti. Media Matters has documented that it went from immediately backing the Department of Homeland Security painting him as a “would-be assassin” to raising questions about their shooting.
Lest anyone get an idea that Fox News or Trey "Mr. Benghazi" Gowdy have found a real moral compass against the Trump administration’s murder spree, let me assure you that both the network and Gowdy made sure to let viewers know they are still 100% MAGA - meaning, of course, 100% anti-Democrat and pro-Trump. Gowdy’s appearance on Fox’s America’s Newsroom show makes that perfectly clear.
This video, via Media Matters, shows, co-anchor Bill Hemmer demonizing Minnesota’s Democratic Governor Tim Walz for likening fearful Minnesotans to Anne Frank. Hemmer quoted from a Wall Street Journal editorial criticizing Walz’s “incendiary” rhetoric for urging citizens to film Department of Homeland Security agents instead of urging them to avoid confrontations.
Never mind that without those cameras, we would have no definitive way to refute the Trump administration lies about DHS agents’ obvious murder of Alex Pretti.
Gowdy didn’t mention that. Instead, he bothsided his criticism by saying the Trump administration and Walz “dropped the ball.” For extra MAGA credit, he added, “I mean, he [Walz] could not be more wrong about his assessment of why this happened.”
Then he suggested that the true MAGA position would not make Pretti’s legal gun carrying a reason for executing him. “It could come down on the conservative side who are saying, ‘Wait a minute. You mean you can't take a firearm to a protest? Because you were just celebrating the guy for doing it a couple of years ago.’” Gowdy was referring to MAGA hero Kyle Rittenhouse, of course.
“Alex Pretti’s firearm was lawfully being carried. It's lawful to carry a gun in Minnesota, brandish it. He didn't point cops,” Gowdy said.
Uh-oh, too much sympathy for the victim! Co-anchor Dana Perino “just asked” whether Pretti was obligated to alert law enforcement that he had a gun.
She, Hemmer and Gowdy all “forgot” to mention that video shows DHS agents took Pretti’s gun before shooting him in the back, as he lay on the ground.
There is no legal obligation to tell law enforcement you are armed, Gowdy responded. But he quickly added that “it is the first thing I tell a police officer who pulls me over.” In other words, Pretti’s death might be partly his own fault for not having done so.
Gowdy also said that since Pretti was pepper sprayed, he was probably disoriented. “Did a cop think he was reaching for his firearm?” Gowdy “asked.”
“That's why the president is right to say we do not know enough to be passing judgment in this case,” Gowdy added, now “forgetting” that Trump quickly passed judgment after Pretti’s death.
But Gowdy also added, “We certainly should not be labeling him as being a domestic terrorist who is going to execute cops. There is no evidence to support that.”
Fox’s big turnaround is no indication that the Trump Propaganda Network has lost its love for Trump. If anything, it’s an indication that they want to make the DHS and/or Kristi Noem the scapegoat of the country’s outrage in order to help out their fave felonious sexual predator in the White House.
