POLITICUSUSA
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.
This past week Americans got another example of the religious Republican fallacy that the movement is pro-life, and another reminder that the GOP’s fealty to the fossil fuel industry is on par with their devotion to evangelical fundamentalists.
President Donald Trump issued a threat to anyone planning to protest tomorrow’s rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
“Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis,” he wrote on Twitter. “It will be a much different scene!”
According to a new poll by the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 63 percent of Republican voters expressed a belief that the country is heading in the wrong direction.
Most Americans––74 percent––said they believe the country is heading in the wrong direction. 37 percent of Republicans said they believe President Donald Trump is dividing the country.
In an interview with WJLA’s Scott Thuman, President Donald Trump said he “absolutely would” support former San Francisco 49er Colin Kaepernick “should get another shot in the NFL.” Kaepernick generated controversy in 2016 for choosing to kneel during the national anthem to protest systemic racism and police brutality, a choice that essentially froze him out of the NFL.