Americans can’t have guns, according to US president Donald Trump. No, you heard that right. The most right-wing president in history is attacking the sacred Second Amendment. For clarity, because Yanks are always waffling about their bleeding Constitution, that’s the one that allows Americans to bear arms.

Trump’s comment came after the 24 January street execution of nurse Alex Pretti on a Minneapolis road. Pretti was shot to death by federal officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He was legally carrying a sidearm.

And let’s get the chronology correct. That weapon was removed from its holster by an immigration agent after a group of them attacked him, wrestling him to the ground. Pretti was then shot multiple times.

Federal officers have become an occupying army in the city’s streets in recent weeks. They say they’re enforcing immigration laws. But that narrative is falling apart fast. Remember they killed another innocent citizen, Renee Good, on 7 January.

In an X video posted on 27 January, Trump can be overheard saying people can’t just walk around with guns:

Trump: You can’t have guns. You can’t walk in with guns. It’s a very unfortunate thing. pic.twitter.com/TkhHQopHA6

— Acyn (@Acyn) January 27, 2026

The problem with this should be obvious. In the US, including in Minnesota, where Pretti was killed, you can walk around with guns if you have the correct permit. Pretti had the correct permits. Another X post dated 27 January has Trump going even further:

He certainly shouldn’t have been carrying a gun. I don’t like that he had a gun

Trump escalates his attacks on the Second Amendment:

“He certainly shouldn’t have been carrying a gun. I don’t like that he had a gun. I don’t like that he had two fully loaded magazines. That’s a lot of bad stuff.”
pic.twitter.com/MTuyMUPWGN

— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) January 27, 2026

But there’s more.

Trump has lost the NRA

America’s National Rifle Association (NRA) are usually associated with far-right gun-nuts in the US. It’s a powerful lobby group for gun ownership. In a weird twist, the NRA now finds itself opposed to Donald Trump.

Here’s what the NRA said following Trump’s comments:

The NRA unequivocally believes that all law-abiding citizens have a right to keep and bear arms anywhere they have a legal right to be.

— NRA (@NRA) January 28, 2026

They didn’t specifically mention the Pretti killing. But it seems pretty clear they were talking about it.

The US government response to the Pretti killing was to try and blame him for his own death. They lied, inferring he had approached federal officers brandishing his firearm.

Republican bootlickers immediately backed the authorities:

If you approach law enforcement with a gun, there is a high likelihood they will be legally justified in shooting you.

Don’t do it! https://t.co/DNpyew6PMh

— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) January 24, 2026

Again, Pretti’s legally owned and carried weapon stayed in his holster until it was removed by law enforcement themselves. Footage shows that he was then shot while lying prone in the ground.

The NRA chipped in on 24 January too – a day after Pretti was killed:

This sentiment from the First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California is dangerous and wrong.

Responsible public voices should be awaiting a full investigation, not making generalizations and demonizing law-abiding citizens. https://t.co/9fMz3CL29o

— NRA (@NRA) January 25, 2026

But this debate isn’t without precedent. The US authorities have attacked the Second Amendment before. For example, in California in 1967 when Black Panthers started to legally open carry, the authorities and NRA started to panic. You can read a full historical case study here from Duke University…

Our timeline is indeed very strange. To have Donald Trump saying Americans can’t have guns speaks to how unhinged US politics have become in recent times. It all becomes clearer when you realise that in the mind of far-right US citizens, cops, militias, and even presidents the Second Amendment should only be exercised by people who agree with them.

Featured image via the Canary

By Joe Glenton

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