Angry Tapper UNLOADS on Ex-Trump Aide: You Think Pretti 'Deserved to Be Shot'!

Tim Graham
January 28th, 2026 4:43 PM

Text to Speech

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On his show The Lead on Monday, CNN host Jake Tapper turned angrily on former Trump official Chad Mizelle when he suggested blaming Alex Pretti’s shooting in part on Tim Walz saying ICE is “Trump’s Gestapo” and Jacob Frey telling ICE to “get the F out” of Minneapolis. Tapper was so furious he accused Mizelle of hating free speech:

TAPPER: So you have an issue with the First Amendment. You don't think that people should be exercising their First Amendment rights to speak about policies that they don't like. You have a more of a problem with that than you have with people killing American citizens. Did I get that right?

MIZELLE: Jake, do you actually think you have a First Amendment right to blow a whistle in the ear of law enforcement, to disobey a lawful command from law enforcement, to interfere with a law enforcement investigation, to carry a gun without a proper ID or license as is required under Minnesota law, and then to violently resist arrest? You think you have a First Amendment right to do all that, Jake?

TAPPER: So you think that he should have been killed? It was all his fault?

MIZELLE: I didn't say that at all, Jake.

Mizelle attempted to point out that Pretti’s activity was breaking the law by intervening with law enforcement and then resisting arrest. He suggested these were crimes like speeding, leading to more Jake snark:  “No, we're asking if like I'm breaking the speed limit -- if I'm breaking the speed limit, does an officer have a right to shoot and kill me? I think that's really what the question is.”

Tapper implied Mizelle seemed unaware of what the video of Pretti's shooting showed, and Mizelle pointed out Pretti was wrestled to the ground by five or six officers as he resisted arrest. Tapper rudely reinterpreted his guest again:

TAPPER: Five or six officers jumping on somebody who obviously was immediately on the ground. And one hand was on the ground and one hand was holding his camera is not evidence that six people needed to be doing that. That's like saying he deserved to be shot. Otherwise, why would the officers have shot him?

You really don't think that they did anything -- that there's any question about whether or not this man deserved to be shot? You really think that this is -- this was fine, this was a fine act? Because I don't even think there are people in the Trump administration who are arguing that.

MIZELLE: Jake, that -- to be clear, I'm not saying that this is a fine act. I think that to take President Trump's terms, this is incredibly unfortunate.

Tapper wasn't done objecting to Mizelle blaming Minnesota Democrats for escalating the rhetoric, and then, as natural as snowstorms in January, Tapper turned it all back to January 6: 

TAPPER: Yes. If you're so offended by the notion that Tim Walz, the governor, was saying things, exercising his free speech rights, saying things that maybe I don't agree with, but he has the right to say them, and that incited these people, but you -- but you don't think that Trump on January 6, 2021 was saying anything that incited that crowd. Explain that to me, because it just doesn't make any sense. Why is Tim Walz inciting these activities, but President Trump was not?

MIZELLE: Jake, I don't even understand the distinction or the analogy you're trying to draw. What I'll say here is you ask --

TAPPER: Well, the analogy is basically that it seems to be the people in the Trump administration, and I guess that includes you, even though you're a former member, think that there's one set of rules for Trump supporters and another set of rules for people who are not Trump supporters, like people who assault law enforcement --

MIZELLE: This is the beauty --

TAPPER: -- people who assault law enforcement on January 6th, that's fine. They should be given pardons. But people who assault law enforcement, and I don't think Alex Pretti, that describes him, that's not allowed.

It's surprising that Tapper would insist on no double standards, even though the Pelosi-Picked Panel standard was a riot at the Capitol should be analyzed endlessly for four years, but the George Floyd riots should not be allowed to be brought up by the Republicans as some sort of diversion, which demonstrated the media has one set of rules for Trump supporters, and another for Black Lives Matter fans. More people died in those BLM riots.

PS: Later in that hour, Tapper gently asked St. Paul's new Democrat mayor Kaohly Her about whether Walz should be blamed, and then insisted to her (Her) that he's just the "messenger," he doesn't believe in blaming the Democrats. 

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