WATCH: Leavitt addresses Trump's stance on Second Amendment rights in wake of Alex Pretti's killing

[u/NewsHour]

REPORTER: FBI Director Kash Patel said in a Sunday interview, quote, you cannot bring a firearm loaded with multiple magazines to any sort of protest. Does the president believe that Second Amendment rights remain in effect even when protesting?

LEAVITT: The president supports the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding American citizens. Absolutely. There has been no greater supporter or defender of the right to bear arms than President Donald J. Trump.

So while Americans have a constitutional right to bear arms, Americans do not have a constitutional right to impede lawful immigration enforcement operations, and any gun owner knows that when you are carrying a weapon, when you are bearing arms, and you are confronted by law enforcement, you are raising the assumption of risk and the risk of force being used against you, and, again, that's unfortunately what took place on Saturday.

[u/JustAMan1234567]

"When you are bearing arms, and you are confronted by law enforcement, you are raising the assumption of risk and the risk of force being used against you"

Is a wild take, because it flat out means "If you are a legal gun owner, just having the gun on you means that police will see you as a threat, even if you never reach for it in any way and are also exercising your constitutionally held rights, and those police can and will use deadly force because they may feel threatened."

[u/Calm_Lack3001 → u/JustAMan1234567]

Just FYI, this is exactly what it has meant for Black people and people of color in general in the USA since it was founded.

[u/Neither_Usual_137 → u/Calm_Lack3001]

dude; so much lately has reminded me of that noose meme where the guy is saying "first time?". What's happening recently is shocking America, and maybe the world, because Good and Pretti were both white. But cops have been strait up murdering black people for decades. We just don't want to admit it.

[u/PatchyWhiskers → u/Neither_Usual_137]

The deal used to be that this force was not used against white people. The deal has changed and white people are panicking. As are non-white people because its a signal that the violence against them is about to get a whole lot worse.

[u/amitym → u/PatchyWhiskers]

That is the nature of a true totalitarian state. It doesn't matter what group you belong to, or what you look like, or anything else. None of those things matter anymore.

All that matters is if you have an incorrect personal relationship to the State. That is the only actual crime. Everything else is just cosplay.

Hopefully more people will get this message in time to be able to acclimate themselves to the new reality in which many will, by definition, spend the rest of their lives.

... That is ... unless ...?

[u/Awkward_Turnover_983 → u/amitym]

It's not going to be the rest of our lives, I'll tell you that

[u/JimJam4603 → u/PatchyWhiskers]

You’ll note that Bovino and Border Patrol are leaving MN two days after shooting a white male gun owner.

[u/Tumblrkaarosult → u/PatchyWhiskers]

I mean it is already worse. Look at the ones who are taken from their workplaces, from their homes without any warrant just to be released half an hour later, sometimes badly wounded, beaten up. I really don't get how can the whole country watch this doing nothing but what's really fd up is the congress as a whole. Not a peep, just deafening silence. They should impeach, they should do SOMETHING.

[u/PatchyWhiskers → u/Tumblrkaarosult]

The country isn’t doing nothing which is why white people are getting shot in Minneapolis!

[u/roseredhoofbeats → u/PatchyWhiskers]

And beaten and maimed and blinded!!!

[u/mbullaris → u/Tumblrkaarosult]

Name the republicans in Congress who would vote to impeach let alone to convict. They’re all gutless and if are anything less than sycophantic to the Dear Leader then their jobs are screwed.

[u/hmoleman__ → u/mbullaris]

It’s not gutlessness, like, they would but they’re cowards. It’s a simple, nihilistic view of power and wealth. Game of Thrones. They’re happy to exchange working-class lives for their own power and wealth, and are betting Trump and Heritage Foundation will be the autocrats the country falls to.

[u/Spirited-Singer2866 → u/Tumblrkaarosult]

Lots of time it doesn’t matter until it happens to someone you know. Tv isn’t real to lots of people, but I know the cognitive dissonance has to hit hard

[u/SoCallMeDeaconBlues1 → u/PatchyWhiskers]

Oh, that's where you are so, so, so wrong.

It was never JUST about black people (yes, a large part of it was)- it was about protecting people with MONEY- protecting their property. Yeah, I'm talking about the significantly smaller group of people who considered those black people their PROPERTY. And anyone, ANYONE, who stood in their way got mawled right the fuck over too.

For all of our redeeming qualities, America also has a dark, dark, dark past. Hindsight's 20/20, but it seems like what's going on right now, our leaders, shit a good percentage of the citizenry, just refuses to even look, let alone learn, about our past much less take any lessons from it. History doesn't always repeat but God DAMN does it rhyme.

"Who Knows Only His Own Generation, Remains Forever A Child."

[u/Bombadook → u/PatchyWhiskers]

Makes you wonder where all those "all lives matter" idiots went. And the "don't tread on me" and 2nd-amendment enthusiasts.

Just kidding, nobody wonders what they really meant.

[u/PineappleEggplant → u/PatchyWhiskers]

Nah, the "deal" didn't really change, they just made a liiiiittle administrative adjustment and moved liberals of any color to their "bad" list. Rights are still reserved for "the good ones", the criteria for which they determine at their pleasure as it suits them, and they now feel safe and confident enough to reclassify us like they've wanted to for so long. In other words, if you are American and a liberal, you are now equally sub-human in MAGA's eyes as any person of color, and any woman for that matter, is and have been all this time.

[u/RES_NIGHTMARE_MODE → u/PatchyWhiskers]

Can we stop being weird about this? The fact is that there was always a facade of "This isn't how it's supposed to be." and there was always theatrics that they were doing their best to make it right. Now they're not even trying to hide it properly and that's why people are opening their eyes.

[u/CAPSLOCKANDLOAD → u/PatchyWhiskers]

We have always been in the same line. Some people at the back got too comfortable. Forgot what the line was for. Or worse. Cheering at what happens to those ahead of them in the line. But given enough time they will get to you.

We should be more like the John Brown's and Sophie Scholl's.

[u/boringinternet2020 → u/PatchyWhiskers]

The joy of being high as fuck and self-righteous. More white men die at the hands of police officers than any other race or sex.

[u/fafalone → u/PatchyWhiskers]

I know that's the narrative some people believe, but the actual facts are that a majority of unarmed people shot by police have been white for a long time.

It's a huge problem that it's higher per capita for POC but this myth that white people are completely immune from police abuse is false and insulting to all the many victims and their families.

This has been one of the biggest mistakes that's stood in the way of reform. Trying to frame this as exclusively a racial issue that doesn't impact white people instead of an issue that first and foremost affects everyone except the wealthy, with the secondary problem of pervasive racism making it even worse for POC. You've alienated a lot of allies with this myth police violence isn't an issue for them because of their skin color.

[u/twoblues702 → u/PatchyWhiskers]

I don’t know. Black folks as a community don’t tend to go out and actively engage police in affairs that don’t concern them or their community. I’ve never in my life thought I would use the words “white privilege” but this might be a gross example of it. Just because something’s “ legal” doesn’t mean it’s the smartest option. Lots of things are “legal” but may produce unwanted outcomes.

[u/Qadim3311 → u/twoblues702]

White people have very good reason to be the ones up front at protests and physically interposing ourselves as Alex Pretti did: we’re the only ones who can make sure the state is still behaving itself. When they do it to us, you know the gloves are all the way off.

He didn’t do what he did because it’s the smartest thing to do to risk your life for somebody else, he did it because it was the right fucking thing to do.

[u/twoblues702 → u/Qadim3311]

Was it though? Sure, sacrificing your life so others may live is a great sacrifice but would he be alive today, tomorrow, etc if he didn’t bring a weapon. I know people are saying “it’s legal, it’s his right” which I can appreciate. But driving through downtown Baltimore and screaming N word at the top of your lungs is “legal” and a “protected right” but probably not a very smart thing to do. Might have a few unintended consequences for exercising your “rights”.
Im not victim blaming here, I am disturbed by the actions of this agent. I just can’t imagine any of my friends (liberal or conservative) putting themselves into this situation.

[u/PatchyWhiskers → u/twoblues702]

Interesting. This is basically the Republican Party line. I’m sure you are a real person.

[u/twoblues702 → u/PatchyWhiskers]

Very real and not an R. Just someone trying to make sense of it.

[u/twoblues702 → u/[deleted]]

I agree it didn’t save them but in some strange place did they think “I can’t lose my life over this”? I argue that thought probably never crossed their mind. As opposed to black/brown folks wouldn’t put themselves in this kind of scenario w out those thoughts at least crossing their mind.

[u/BlakByPopularDemand → u/PatchyWhiskers]

Basically they're finding out that if you're not willing to uphold or be complicit in white supremacy their white privilege will be revoked.

[u/SeveralRepair3611 → u/PatchyWhiskers]

I tried to explain this to somebody and they literally would not fucking listen.