Donald Trump on Sunday accused the Democrats of doing nothing to stop the ‘far left’ bringing cities to a halt in the wake of protests at the death of George Floyd.
In a tweet the president also suggested the ‘same weak leaders’ instead ‘become radical’ when it comes to keeping things closed due to coronavirus.
Protesters in Seattle have sealed off a six-block area that has become known as the CHAZ – or Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone. The mayor there ordered police to abandon the area after near-daily clashes in the wake of Floyd’s death.
Tweeting on his 74th birthday Trump wrote: ‘Interesting how ANTIFA and other Far Left militant groups can take over a city without barely a wimpier from soft Do Nothing Democrat leadership, yet these same weak leaders become RADICAL when it comes to shutting down a state or city and its hard working, tax paying citizens!’
Seattle’s chief of police said earlier she wants her officers to return to the abandoned East Precinct building that was boarded up just before Black Lives Matter protesters began occupying a so-called ‘autonomous zone’ near downtown.
But Police Chief Carmen Best’s message appears at odds with Mayor Jenny Durkan, who has supported a more hands-off approach while saying that the protesters are exercising their First Amendment rights.
President Trump had already taunted Washington State Governor Jay Inslee and Durkan about the situation on Twitter and said the city had been taken over by ‘anarchists.’
olice abandoned its East Precinct during protests against police brutality and the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died after being pinned down by a white police officer in Minneapolis.The six-block area that has become known as the CHAZ – or Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone – is pictured Sunday
People walk past barricades on a street near Cal Anderson Park, Thursday inside the CHAZ
Donald Trump on Sunday accused the Democrats of doing nothing to stop the ‘far left’ bringing cities to a halt in the wake of protests at the death of George Floyd
Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best talks to media in front of the Seattle Police Department’s East Precinct on Thursday, left. Best has been critical of the decision by Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan , right, to order officers to abandon the East Precinct, where protesters have set up their own police-free ‘autonomous zone’
When asked by CNN’s Chris Cuomo on Thursday how long she expected protesters to remain in the area before police return to the precinct, Durkan said: ‘I don’t know. We could have a summer of love.’
Meanwhile, members of an armed left-wing group, the Puget Sound John Brown Gun Club, have been spotted in the area after they were hired to provide security for ‘some very prominent black voices’ who were giving speeches, according to The Daily Beast.
The clashes between demonstrators and police drew nationwide attention after law enforcement officials made widespread use of controversial crowd control tactics like stun grenades, pepper spray, and tear gas.
The massive unrest prompted the city’s mayor, Durkan, to order police to abandon the East Precinct building, yielding it to protesters.
Despite reports of widespread lawlessness, the area appears to be largely peaceful, as authorities describe a ‘block party atmosphere’ where people are having cookouts, film screenings, art exhibits, and other cultural activities.
Protesters, however, said they plan on maintaining the ‘no-police zone’ until their demands for reform, including the cutting of funding to law enforcement, are met.
Protesters remove a man because he was bothering other protesters at the self-proclaimed Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) during a protest against racial inequality and call for defunding of Seattle police on Saturday
Mayor Durkan’s office on Thursday released a statement saying it was her decision to remove barriers around the East Precinct.
That came hours after Best posted a video criticizing the decision and implicitly accusing Durkan of caving to ‘severe public pressure.’
Best went public and distanced herself from the decision. She told her officers that she did not give the order to abandon the precinct.
‘I’m angry about how all this came about,’ Best said in the video.
Best said that SPD had ‘solid information’ that led them to believe anti-government groups would destroy the precinct.
Best told KIRO-TV on Friday that she wanted to see her charges back in the precinct ‘as soon as possible.’
She said that 911 response times have increased threefold since the precinct was abandoned. Best said the department and city officials are now pondering their next steps.
A protester uses a scope on top of a barricade to look for police approaching the newly created CHAZ on Thursday
Trump taunted Washington State Governor Jay Inslee and Durkan about the situation on Twitter and said the city had been taken over by ‘anarchists.’
‘Take back your city NOW. If you don’t do it, I will,’ Trump tweeted.
The president continued his complaints in a Thursday interview with the Fox News Channel.
‘If we have to go in, we’re going to go in,’ Trump said, ‘These people are not going to occupy a major portion of a great city.’
The president has sparred before with Inslee and Durkan – both liberal Democrats.
Inslee previously sought his party’s presidential nomination.
Inslee tweeted Thursday that state officials will not allow threats of military violence from the White House.
‘The US military serves to protect Americans, not the fragility of an insecure president,’ he tweeted.
Donald Trump, pictured Saturday, accused the Democrats of doing nothing to stop the ‘far left’ bringing cities to a halt in the wake of protests at the death of George Floyd
Artists fill in the letters of a ‘Black Lives Matter’ mural on E. Pine Street as protesters establish what they call an autonomous zone while protesting against racial inequality and calling for the defunding of Seattle police
Protesters listen to a speaker as they sit in front of the Seattle Police Department East Precinct building, which has been boarded up and abandoned Thursday inside what is being called the ‘Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone’ in Seattle
Seattle Police Assistant Chief Deanna Nollette and Assistant Chief Adrian Diaz are blocked by protesters from entering the newly created Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) in Seattle, Washington on Thursday
The zone set up by protesters stretches a portion of Capitol Hill, where dozens of people show up to listen to speakers calling for police reform, racial justice and compensation for Native groups on whose land the city of Seattle was founded.
Signs proclaim ‘You are entering free Capitol Hill’ and ‘No cop co-op’ along sidewalks where people sell water and other wares.
On Thursday, speakers used a microphone to discuss their demands and how to address the police presence after they visited the precinct during the day.
Down the street, artists continued painting a block-long Black Lives Matter mural on the street.
Several individuals inside the CHAZ have been seen with assault rifles.
These armed leftists who are members of the PSJBGC describe themselves as part of an ‘anti-fascist, anti-racist, pro-worker community defense organization committed to accountable, community-led defense in the Puget Sound region.’
A volunteer works security at an entrance to the so-called ‘Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone’ on Wednesday
Several armed individuals have been seen inside the CHAZ. A few belong to a left-wing group known as the Puget Sound John Brown Gun Club
‘There have been individuals with weapons – open carrying is legal in Washington State,’ the mayor’s office said in a statement when asked about armed protesters inside CHAZ.
‘While the CHAZ is within the area of the City currently under a weapons ban, the Emergency Order establishing the weapons ban does not mandate enforcement.
‘It gives officers the option to take certain actions (i.e., confiscate weapons) if they deem it necessary.’