Kash Patel Clarifies Position on Gun Rights After Backlash

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Source: Newsweek

Published Jan 27, 2026 at 06:57 AM EST updated Jan 27, 2026 at 06:58 AM EST


Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel said the bureau "fully" supports the Second Amendment but urged armed Americans to avoid bringing loaded weapons to volatile protests, after gun-rights groups accused the administration of blaming a lawful gun owner killed by a federal officer in Minneapolis.

"We truly, fully support the Second Amendment—people's right to bear arms," he said, adding that in situations like the current unrest in Minnesota "we have to ask people what's prudential, what's smart." "And it's not smart to go out there with a fully loaded weapon," Patel told Fox News’ Sean Hannity. "We're just saying be careful and be reasonable."

It comes after several gun rights groups criticized his previous comments following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti—a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry—by a federal agent, at a protest in Minneapolis on Saturday. Newsweek has contacted the FBI, via email outside of normal working hours, for comment on Patel’s behalf.

Why it Matters

The scrutiny over Patel’s remarks highlight how the Second Amendment’s protection of gun ownership has emerged as a key issue in the shooting of Pretti. Trump’s administration has often stood by gun rights groups’ defense of the right to openly carry firearms in public. But gun rights groups, including the National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR), have said that Patel’s rhetoric around guns amid the shooting "sets a dangerous precedent for Second Amendment rights."

Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/kash-patel-gun-rights-backlash-second-amendment-pretti-11421751