Colbert warns Trump administration is imposing an ‘obey or die’ doctrine on Americans

Late-night host Stephen Colbert warned Thursday that the Trump administration was enforcing what he described as an “obey or die” policy following the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis on Wednesday.

On “The Late Show,” Colbert criticized the Trump administration’s response to the shooting and urged Americans to “peacefully and nonviolently” voice opposition to the presence of federal agents in their cities.

After accusing the White House of “trying to spin” the narrative surrounding the shooting, Colbert said, “The message from this administration is clear: only they determine the truth, and when their forces come to your city, obey or die, and if you die, you clearly didn’t obey.”

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Host Stephen Colbert during his show, “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on July 21, 2025. (Scott Kowalchyk/CBS)

Colbert warned Americans that, regardless of where they live or who governs their state, the shooting and the White House’s response should be deeply concerning.

“This should be an alarm bell for the entire country, whether you live in a red state or a blue state, because if we let this go on, regardless of who your state voted for, one day you’ll have unaccountable armed government agents acting with impunity in your town,” he said.

The late-night host then urged viewers to take action, telling the audience to “peacefully, and non-violently, please let your leaders know you don’t want that.”

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A former Secret Service and ICE agent explains why the officer had only seconds to act as a vehicle accelerated toward him in Minneapolis. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

Earlier in the show, Colbert offered his view on the Minneapolis incident, arguing that the ICE officer was unjustified in shooting Good.

“By now we’ve all seen the video,” he said. “I’m not going to play it again, but in it — as reported by The New York Times — Good appears to be turning away from a federal officer. And as reported by The Washington Post, the agent was able to move out of the way and fire at least two of the three shots from the side of the vehicle as it veered past him. It sure looks like a federal agent gunned down an American citizen without cause in front of witnesses on a city street.”

Discussing the administration’s response, Colbert said the White House “is telling you that you didn’t see that. They’re saying you saw him respond to an act of domestic terrorism. They’re telling you to believe them and not your eyes.”

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Trump called Good a “violent agitator” who tried to run over the ICE agent with her car. (Christopher Juhn/Anadolu via Getty Images;Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital‘s request for comment.

On Wednesday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called Good a “domestic terrorist” and said she was “using a vehicle to try to kill an officer and his colleagues.”

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President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social hours after the shooting, calling Good a “professional agitator” who “viciously ran over” the ICE officer, adding that the agent fired in self-defense.