DENVER — Colorado Democratic lawmakers said a Minnesota man killed by federal immigration agents over the weekend was “murdered by our own government” and demanded ICE reforms during a virtual news conference Tuesday.
“Every Republican, Democrat, and citizen should be absolutely horrified by what we're seeing,” said Rep. Brittany Pettersen, a Democrat who represents Colorado's 7th Congressional District. “He was murdered by our own government, and now the administration is spreading horrific lies about who he was and what happened.”
The Trump administration swiftly moved after the shooting to portray Alex Pretti, 37, as a disrupter who brought his own legal gun to a protest.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem referred to Pretti as a “domestic terrorist.” Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino said he “violently resisted” and wanted to “massacre law enforcement.”
Video of the violent incident contradicts those statements.
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Colorado Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday wanted to set the record straight.
“Alex was an ICU nurse at the VA hospital, and he cared deeply about making the world a better place. He was described by people who knew him as a kindhearted soul who cared deeply about his friends and family and the outdoors. His last action was trying to protect a woman from a rogue agent,” said Rep. Pettersen.
The group of lawmakers is now calling for Kristi Noem's resignation.
The Democratic senators also plan to vote against the next government funding bill because it includes $64.4 billion in DHS funding and $10 billion for ICE.
Republicans control the Senate 53-47, and the spending bill needs 60 votes to pass.
If enough Democrats vote against the bill, the U.S. government could enter a partial shutdown on Saturday. Nonessential federal employees would be furloughed, and essential employees would work without pay. DHS and ICE operations would continue through the shutdown.
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The threat of another shutdown comes just months after the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, which lasted 43 days beginning on October 1, 2025.
Denver7’s Jessica Porter asked Colorado’s senators if the threat of another shutdown was warranted, considering lawmakers were not successful in funding expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies during the last shutdown.
“I think all of us need to send a message here that we're not going to be complicit in Donald Trump and Kristi Noem’s marauding against the American people and the lawlessness of his agency,” Sen. Michael Bennet, D-CO, said.
Democratic Sen. Hickenlooper told Denver7 this is a turning point and an opportunity for Democrats to force the Trump administration into ICE reforms like no more masks, using legal warrants to enter homes, restricting agents from churches and schools and limitations on operations in cities.
“This is simple and straightforward; we offer the Republicans and the White House a remarkable opportunity to de-escalate,” Hickenlooper said.
