POLITICUSUSA
Derek Chauvin pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges of violating George Floyd’s civil rights.
Chauvin had previously pleaded not guilty to violating Floyd’s constitutional rights when he arrested Floyd and killed him after kneeling on his neck for nearly 10 minutes last spring in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Floyd’s murder sparked international outrage and kicked off the largest nationwide protests for racial justice seen in decades.
Back in September, two months before losing the election to Joe Biden, when Donald Trump was repeating the fallacy either he win the election or it’s “rigged,” Trump announced the formation of the “1776 Commission,” a retaliation against The New York Times’ Pulitzer Prize-winning “1619 Project,” dedicated to chronicling the country’s history beginning the year Europeans shipped the first enslaved Africans to American shores.
On Friday, host and comedy writer Amber Ruffin used her "How did we get here?" segment to respond to Critical Race Theory critics.
Amid the national debate about the militarization of law enforcement, House Democrats have introduced a bill to limit the transfer of military-grade gear to police officers.
The bill is sponsored by Representative Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) and “goes after the items that destroy trust and endanger communities while allowing support equipment transfers to continue,” according to a summary shared with The Hill. It is co-sponsored by 74 other House Democrats.
Yesterday, the Attorney General of Kentucky only filed charges of wanton endangerment against just one of the officers involved in the Breonna Taylor shooting. Last night, protesters took to the streets in a number of cities over the miscarriage of justice.
Attorney General William Barr said in a statement that New York City, Seattle, and Portland, Oregon are jurisdictions “permitting violence and destruction of property” and are subject to funding cuts per an executive order from President Donald Trump to slash the budgets of cities “permitting anarchy.” The news release cites the decision by New York and Seattle lawmakers to cut police department budgets and the existence of the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP) in Seattle, a self-declared autonomous zone that police cleared of protesters in July.
According to the latest Monmouth poll, 61 percent of Americans say the way President Donald Trump is handling nationwide protests is actually worsening things, not making them better.
“Most Americans (61%) say that Trump’s handling of the protests has made the situation worse and just 24% say he has made it better. These results are basically unchanged from late June (62% worse and 20% better). Nearly 9 in 10 non-Republicans say Trump has made the situation worse, including 88% who are white, 87% who are Black, and 86% who are of another racial minority group. Republicans and GOP-leaners stand alone in their feeling that the president has made the situation better (46%) rather than worse (30%). These findings are similar to the late June poll results,” Monmouth observes.
Protests have continued unabated in Wisconsin since Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot by police officers, reinvigorating demonstrations against racial injustice and police brutality that kicked off at the beginning of the summer following the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota.
President Donald Trump praised the National Guard for ending violence in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the site of heavy protests after Jacob Blake was shot and partially paralyzed by police officers. Violence broke out after 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse shot and killed two protesters.
President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner dismissed NBA players who’ve opted not to play games as part of a protest against police brutality against Black Americans, saying they are “fortunate” to have enough wealth to “take a night off from work.”
Rudy Giuliani has accused the Black Lives Matter movement of being a terrorist organization driven by hatred of white people. The former New York mayor called BLM “killers”.
Giuliani spoke to Fox News on Thursday about ongoing protests for racial justice and didn’t hold back in his condemnation of Black Lives Matter and Antifa.
President Donald Trump tweeted a message commemorating Charles Evers, the older brother of slain civil rights leader Medgar Evers and a prominent figure in Mississippi politics. The message courted controversy immediately: The president has in recent weeks tweeted support for flying Confederate flags has continued to disparage the Black Lives Matter movement, and has faced heated criticism for sending federal agents into Portland to quell protests there.
Chad Wolf struck a defiant tone following criticism of federal agents in Portland, Oregon. He said his officers would continue to operate in the city amid protests.
The Acting Security of Homeland Security claimed at a press conference on Tuesday that protests in Portland weren’t peaceful. His department has been widely criticized in recent days.
Tom Cotton compared protesters to the traitors who rebelled against the United States and formed the Confederacy on Tuesday. The comments come as the President threatens to deploy federal officers to cities.
A clear majority of American voters now believe U.S. society is racist. This represents a significant trend as protests against the treatment of African Americans continue.
A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds that 56% of Americans think the country is racist, while a staggering 71% believe race relations are bad at the moment.
The Department of Defense may ban the display of the Confederate flag at its properties. The press obtained a proposed Pentagon policy about the matter on Monday.
The DOD’s Undersecretary for Personnel Matthew Donovan wrote a memo on banning the Confederate battle flag. He highlighted the importance of the U.S. flag and minority members of the military.
Democrats have reacted with fury and incredulity to reports that the army issued troops with bayonets during protests in Washington, D.C. The weapons were never used.
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, confirmed that bayonets were issued during recent protests in the nation’s capital. Democratic lawmakers were quick to react.
Nancy Pelosi has slammed Republicans’ policing reform bill, which won’t ban chokeholds or no-knock warrants. The Senate bill will likely not advance following Democratic opposition,
The Speaker of the House told CBS News Radio that the Senate GOP bill was insufficient and that it was unlikely that the parties could reach a compromise on the bill.
Rudy Giuliani has accused the Black Lives Matter movement of wanting to destroy the government and steal your house. The former New York mayor railed against the current protests.
Giuliani told Fox News’ Laura Ingraham that those protesting for justice for George Floyd were carrying out a plot. This plan involves taking people’s property.
President Donald Trump said he would use “serious force” against protesters if they set up an autonomous zone in Washington, D..C.
“There will never be an ‘Autonomous Zone’ in Washington, D.C., as long as I’m your President. If they try they will be met with serious force!” he wrote.