President Trump said Monday he declined to meet with the family of the man shot by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin, because the family wanted lawyers to be present.
“I thought it would be better not to do anything where there are lawyers involved,” Mr. Trump told reporters when asked whether he would meet with the family of Jacob Blake.
Mr. Trump is set to travel to Kenosha on Tuesday to address the unrest in the wake of the shooting Mr. Blake, who is paralyzed from the waist down, according to family.
He was shot from behind as he walked away from the police and tried to enter his vehicle after officers reported using a Taser to try and stop him as part of an investigation into a domestic incident.
Two people were killed in violent protests in the aftermath. A 17-year-old, Kyle Rittenhouse, who showed up in Kenosha with a firearm is charged in connection with the deaths.
Mr. Trump called the Rittenhouse episode an “interesting situation” and appeared to defend him as he referred to a tape of his interactions with protesters.
“He was trying to get away from them, as I saw,” he said.
Mr. Trump commented on the situation as part of a lengthy remarks in a press conference in which he decried his November opponent, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden, as weak and too deferential to violent “Antifa” protesters causing upheaval in select U.S. cities.
The president said cops need to be given “back their dignity” and said he will visit Kenosha despite local requests for him to stay away. Some officials fear his presence will cause more upheaval.
“I have to see the people who did such a good job for me,” he said, rejecting the idea it would cause more harm than good. “It could also increase enthusiasm and it could increase love and respect for our country, and that’s why I’m going.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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