Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas on Monday said he thinks Democratic presidential nominee Joseph R. Biden is panicking and doesn’t know how to respond to recent violence in cities like Kenosha, Wisconsin, and Portland, Oregon.
“I think Joe Biden [has] panicked and [is] overmatched by events,” Mr. Cotton said on “Fox and Friends.”
He said Mr. Biden issued a “mealy-mouthed” statement on Sunday “that didn’t call for Democratic mayors to allow their police to enforce the law or Democratic governors to use the National Guard where necessary.”
“It simply called for a tough statement - that’s the kind of feckless leadership you would get from Joe Biden as president,” Mr. Cotton said. “Not enforcing the law - not using force where necessary to deter this kind of violence but simply words on paper.”
Mr. Biden on Sunday said he condemns the deadly violence in Portland over the weekend after clashes between pro-Trump protesters and Black Lives Matter activists left at least one person dead.
He said he condemns violence of every kind by anyone regardless of their political views. Mr. Biden said President Trump “is recklessly encouraging violence.”
Mr. Biden is scheduled to speak in Pennsylvania on Monday and ask whether people feel safe in “Donald Trump’s America.”
Mr. Trump is scheduled to visit Kenosha on Tuesday, though Wisconsin leaders, including Gov. Tony Evers, have urged him not to come.Protests in Wisconsin that were sparked after Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot by police last week have left at least two people dead.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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