Donald Trumps vows to send in army
US President Donald Trump on Friday called protesters in Minneapolis ‘thugs’ and vowed that ‘when the looting starts, the shooting starts’.
US President Donald Trump on Friday called protesters in Minneapolis “thugs” and vowed that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts”.
Mr Trump tweeted after protesters outraged by the death of a black man in police custody torched a police station.
On Thursday, Mr Trump said “I feel very, very badly” about George Floyd’s death while handcuffed and in the custody of Minneapolis police. “That’s a very shocking sight.”
It was the kind of personal statement expected from a president in response to the disturbing video of a black man gasping for help as a white policeman pinned him to the street by the neck.
But it was a very different tone for Mr Trump, who has often been silent in the face of white-on-black violence and has a long history of defending police.
Mr Trump’s language got more aggressive as violence boiled over in Minneapolis on Thursday night.
“These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen,” the President tweeted.
“Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!”
Authorities tried to avoid a third night of looting and rioting in the twin cities of Minneapolis and St Paul. However, cheering protesters broke into the Minneapolis police precinct station near where Mr Floyd was killed.
A police spokesman confirmed that staff had evacuated the precinct “in the interest of the safety of our personnel” shortly after 10pm on Thursday (Friday 1pm AEST).
Live-streamed video showed the protesters entering the building, where fire alarms blared and sprinklers ran as fires were started. Protesters could be seen setting fire to a Minneapolis Police Department jacket and cheering.
Dozens of businesses boarded up their windows and doors in an effort to prevent looting, with Target announcing it was temporarily closing two dozen stores. Minneapolis shut down nearly its entire light-rail system and all bus services through out of safety concerns.
Outrage over Mr Floyd’s death spread to other parts of the country, with protesters in Los Angeles blocking a freeway and confronting a police car while in Memphis protesters chanted “no justice, no peace” outside a police station.
Authorities in Minneapolis pleaded for calm, with the mayor of St Paul, Melvin Carter, tweeting: “The situation in our city right now is heartbreaking & rapidly devolving. I’m angry/sad as anyone & pushing for the officers who killed George Floyd to be arrested ASAP. Destroying places we rely on for jobs, food & medicine won’t help us prevent it from happening again.”
Mr Walz said there was a need for systemic change in the state’s police force. “It is time to rebuild. Rebuild the city, rebuild our justice system, and rebuild the relationship between law enforcement and those they’re charged to protect. George Floyd’s death should lead to justice and systemic change, not more death and destruction,” he said.
Mr Trump said he would instruct the FBI to investigate the killing. He said the FBI would take “a very strong look … to see what went on because that was a very bad thing that I saw … it’s a very shocking sight”.
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