President Trump mobilized all civilian and military forces Monday night to end nationwide looting and property destruction after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, saying his “first and highest duty” is to defend the nation and he won’t allow “anarchists” to upend the country.
“I am mobilizing all federal and local resources, civilian and military, to protect the rights of law-abiding Americans,” Mr. Trump said in a surprise address at the White House. “I am also taking swift and decisive action to protect our great capital, Washington, D.C. What happened in this city last night was a total disgrace.”
Soon after he spoke, National Guard troops were moved onto the White House grounds, where they took up positions. Trucks ferried soldiers on Pennsylvania Avenue and arrived near the White House in front of dozens of chanting demonstrators.
Before and while the president was making the announcement, police forces clashed with peaceful protesters within earshot of the White House with flash-bang devices and tear gas, clearing the way for Mr. Trump to make a dramatic visit on foot across Lafayette Park to the vandalized St. John’s Episcopal Church, which was set on fire Sunday night.
He displayed a Bible as he stood in front of the boarded-up historic church.
“Greatest country in the world, and we’re going to keep it safe,” the president said.
The president made the rapid series of surprise moves after watching with increasing frustration as governors across the country failed to stop six straight nights of rioting in dozens of cities. On Monday night, the president showed he’d had enough.
Mr. Trump warned governors that he would exercise an arcane law — the 1807 Insurrection Act — to deploy military forces “to quickly solve the problem for them.”
He urged the governors to deploy National Guard units in large enough numbers so “we dominate the streets” and said those who destroy property will be punished to the full extent of the law.
“I swore an oath to uphold the laws of our nation, and that is exactly what I will do,” Mr. Trump said in a Rose Garden address blocks away from clashes, creating an astonishing split-screen on cable news.
The president said the U.S. needs “security, not anarchy,” and he will succeed.
“Our country always wins,” Mr. Trump said.
Protests have erupted across the U.S. after the May 25 death of Mr. Floyd, a black man who died after a white officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes during an arrest in Minneapolis.
Mr. Trump implored governors earlier Monday to mobilize more of the country’s 350,000 National Guard troops to retake control of streets from rioters. He also rebuked states’ responses as “weak” and warned that he could deploy active-duty military troops to restore order in dozens of cities reeling from looting, arson and violent clashes with police.
In a testy conference call with governors after six nights of rioting, the president and Attorney General William P. Barr said the federal government was deploying special riot control teams from the Bureau of Prisons to the District of Columbia and to Miami to help quell the worst street violence in the U.S. since 1992.
“Most of you are weak,” Mr. Trump told the governors. “You’ve got to arrest people, you have to track people, you have to put them in jail for 10 years and you’ll never see this stuff again.”
The president said, “You have to dominate. If you don’t dominate, you’re wasting your time. They’re going to run over you. You’re going to look like a bunch of jerks.”
The White House also said the federal government is setting up a “central command” center that will include Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper and Mr. Barr.
More than 4,000 people were arrested across the country over the weekend, and law enforcement officials were bracing for more violence Monday night. The governor of Kentucky ordered an investigation into the fatal shooting of a man in a confrontation with Louisville police and the National Guard.
California ordered state offices to close in downtown areas of large cities. Major retailers including Walmart and Target temporarily closed some of their stores in areas hit by demonstrations.
In Minneapolis a week after Mr. Floyd died, his brother Terrence Floyd made an emotional plea for protesters to stop the violence.
“I understand you’re all upset,” Mr. Floyd told a crowd over a bullhorn. “But like it was already said, I doubt you’re all half as upset as I am. So if I’m not over here … blowing up stuff, if I’m not over here messing up my community, then what are you all doing?”
An independent autopsy commissioned by Mr. Floyd’s family determined that the cause of his death was “asphyxiation from sustained pressure,” attorneys for the family said Monday.
“The officers killed him based on a knee to his neck for almost nine minutes and two knees on his back, compressing his lungs,” family attorney Benjamin Crump said. “The ambulance was his hearse.”
The result differs from preliminary autopsy results from the Hennepin County medical examiner’s office, which found no evidence of asphyxiation or strangulation. The medical examiner found that Mr. Floyd’s death was caused by a combination of police restraints, his underlying health conditions and “any potential intoxicants in his system.”
The officer who knelt on Mr. Floyd’s neck, Derek Chauvin, has been fired and charged with third-degree homicide. Three other officers who were fired have not been charged.
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joseph R. Biden, in his first public appearance since the coronavirus shutdown, met with black leaders at a church in Delaware. He pledged to deal with institutional racism and set up a police oversight body quickly if he is elected.
“Hate just hides,” Mr. Biden said. “It doesn’t go away, and when you have somebody in power who breathes oxygen into the hate under the rocks, it comes out from under the rocks. It matters what presidents say.”
After two nights of relative calm in Minnesota, Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, announced a narrower curfew for Minneapolis and St. Paul from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. for Monday and Tuesday. Mr. Walz also noted that restaurants in the state were open Monday for outdoor dining for the first time since the coronavirus crisis caused shutdowns.
Mr. Walz said many members of the Minnesota National Guard could be going back home after he authorized their deployment over the weekend. The state had activated about 7,000 Guard members last weekend as part of its response.
In Oregon, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams pleaded Monday for Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, to call up the National Guard, saying she has been asked repeatedly but has so far refused to send troops to help “desperate” officers besieged by rioting.
“I spoke to the governor three or four times yesterday,” Mr. Wheeler said at a press conference. “The governor had alternative strategies that she suggested, including deploying more state police resources.”
The White House said if governors don’t activate more National Guard troops to suppress the rioting, the president has the “prerogative” to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807 to deploy active-duty military troops domestically.
Mr. Trump again blamed the violence on “the radical left,” but he also urged governors to deal sternly with looters who are simply taking advantage of the chaos in the streets.
“It’s people that figure they can get free stuff by running into stores and running out with television sets,” the president said. “I saw it: A kid has a lot of stuff, he puts it in the back of a brand-new car and drives off. You have every one of these guys on tape. Why aren’t you prosecuting them? Now, the harder you are, the tougher you are, the less likely you’re going to be hit.”
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, was one of the few governors to push back against the president on the call.
“I’ve been extraordinarily concerned about the rhetoric that’s been used by you,” Mr. Pritzker told the president. “It’s been inflammatory, and it’s not OK for that officer to choke George Floyd to death, but we have to call for calm. We have to have police reform called for.”
Mr. Pritzker said “the rhetoric that’s coming out of the White House is making it worse. People are feeling real pain out there. And we’ve got to have national leadership in calling for calm and making sure that we’re addressing the concerns of the legitimate peaceful protesters. That will help us to bring order.”
Mr. Trump replied, “I don’t like your rhetoric much either, because I watched it with respect to the coronavirus, and I don’t like your rhetoric much either. I think you could have done a much better job, frankly, but that’s OK. We know we don’t agree with each other.”
Maine Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, told the president that she was “very concerned” about reports he will visit the state Friday. She said a presidential appearance “may cause security problems for our state.”
Mr. Trump accused Mr. Biden of employing “radical left” campaign workers over a report that they donated to a bail fund aimed at springing arrested Minneapolis protesters.
“Sleepy Joe Biden’s people are so Radical Left that they are working to get the Anarchists out of jail, and probably more,” Mr. Trump tweeted. “Joe doesn’t know anything about it, he is clueless, but they will be the real power, not Joe. They will be calling the shots!”
At least 13 Biden campaign staffers posted messages online saying they contributed to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, according to Reuters.
Funds aimed at bailing out and providing legal aid to protesters have also collected donations and pledges from celebrities such as Steve Carell, Seth Rogen and Chrissy Teigen.
• Valerie Richardson and David Sherfinski contributed to this report.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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