Statement On The Murder of Alex Pretti

In the wake of another day of ICE's reign of terror on the American people, and the violent murder of Minneapolis ICU nurse Alex Pretti, the administration’s refusal to order an immediate pause in federal immigration enforcement actions is a failure of leadership.

When enforcement escalates despite mounting evidence of constitutional violations, civilian harm, and loss of life, the obligation of government is to stop, assess, and correct course. Instead, this administration is fanning the flames. What is happening cannot be justified without abandoning the rule of law and basic human decency. The explanations being offered are not serious policy arguments. They are denial presented as governance.

Congress is not powerless. It never has been. The Constitution provides clear mechanisms to halt unlawful or dangerous executive action. Congress can restrict appropriations. It can suspend routine procedure. It can deny unanimous consent, require full roll-call votes, and demand full readings of legislation. These tools exist for moments like this. Yet too many members choose statements over action while the harm continues.

That failure is not accidental. Too many members of Congress prioritize their salaries, their benefits, and their donors over their sworn duty to protect the people they represent. That is institutional cowardice. That is why I am running to unseat Pete Sessions in Texas’s 17th Congressional District.

We must also be clear about discipline and resolve. We must resist the urge to answer lawlessness with violence. That is not weakness. It is strength. Escalation is exactly what this administration is attempting to provoke. When government abandons the law, it often hopes the public will react in ways that justify further repression. We will not give them that excuse. The Constitution is the answer. Lawful resistance is the answer. Accountability is the answer.

If elected, I will call for an immediate pause in these enforcement actions and for the defunding of agencies that have demonstrated an inability to operate within constitutional boundaries. In their place, we must build an immigration system rooted in due process, service, and human dignity. Enforcement without accountability is not security. It is abuse.

There must be a real, lawful pathway to citizenship. That pathway begins with people being able to engage the immigration system without fear of detention, separation, or violence. Anything less is an abdication of our values.

Veterans are stepping forward to run for Congress in record numbers because we recognize this pattern. We have seen governments use fear, disappearances, and unchecked force against civilian populations. We were sent abroad to confront that behavior. We will not ignore it at home.

Alex Pretti was assisting a legal ICE observer who was assaulted by ICE agents. He had no criminal background except for parking tickets. He should still be with us and our hearts go out to all who mourn his loss and also those who continue to advocate for justice. 

The sweeps must pause. Oversight must occur. And the United States must return to governance rooted in law, restraint, and human dignity.