Stewart tore into the shifting explanations by officials in the Trump administration as they attempted to justify Pretti’s killing, even accusing him ― without evidence ― of being a “domestic terrorist.” Trump officials continued to make accusations against Pretti as footage emerged from “every angle imaginable that contradicts the government’s version of events,” Stewart said.
Bystander footage showed Pretti holding a cellphone as he recorded the scene. Federal officers surrounded him, and in the ensuing scuffle, they discovered he had a concealed firearm, which he was licensed to carry. The agents took the gun as they wrestled with him on the ground and then shot him multiple times.
Stewart called the administration’s attempt to claim Pretti was a threat despite all the footage showing otherwise to be “the denial of the reality that we all witnessed.”
“They’re lying,” Stewart said. “We saw it. And that’s how brazen they lie when they know we’ve seen the truth. That’s how they lie when they know we know. Imagine how they lie when there’s no evidence to contradict them.”
Stewart also pointed to a deeper irony: Pretti did, in a way, have a weapon in his hand after all ― one the government might fear more than any gun.
“A handheld aluminum, 1080p, 60 FPS weapon of mass illumination,” Stewart said, describing Pretti’s cellphone. “Because there is nothing more dangerous to a regime predicated on lies than witnesses who capture the truth.”
See his full segment below:
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