Trump defers to states after protests over George Floyd’s death spread across nation
President Donald Trump is relying on mayors and governors to secure cities across the country rocked by protests this weekend over the death of George Floyd in police custody and does not plan to federalize National Guard troops in response, his national security advisor said Sunday.
Fury over Floyd, a black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck, sparked violent protests in cities across the United States. By Sunday more than 5,000 National Guard troops had been activated by governors in 16 states and the District of Columbia, with “another 2,000 prepared to activate if needed,” the Guard said in a statement.
National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien told reporters at the White House that Trump could activate military police if the situation worsens.
“We’re not going to federalize the guard at this time, but if necessary, we have further military assets that can be deployed, military police units and that sort of thing that can be deployed,” he said. “If the governors and the mayors need it, and they can’t get control of the situation, we’re there as a reserve.”
Military action is not the president’s preference, O’Brien said. “We want the governors and the mayors to take control of their cities.”
The heads of the Georgia, Minnesota and Colorado National Guard, in a call with reporters Sunday afternoon, all emphatically said none of their troops had used force on any protester, and had not used batons, TASERs, rubber bullets, tear gas or sidearms during the demonstrations. The National Guard has been used to protect critical infrastructure, such as hospitals, and back up local police.
Colorado National Guard members were sent with batons and shields, but otherwise were not armed. Colorado National Guard Adjutant General Air Force Maj. Gen. Michael Loh said the governor had said if potential deadly force had to be used, he wanted local police to take the lead.
A widely circulated video on Twitter alleged that Minnesota National Guard members had assisted in the sweep of a residential neighborhood. The Minnesota National Guard on Sunday said the video involved local police only, there were no Guardsmen involved.
“Our actions are related to arrest and detention,” said Minnesota National Guard Adjutant General Army Maj. Gen. Jon Jensen. He said his forces have been serving as bus drivers to transport arrested people.
Georgia National Guard Adjutant General Army Maj. Gen. Thomas Carden said while his forces sent to Atlanta and Savannah were armed, they have focused on protecting infrastructure.
He said the violence over the weekend should be a wake-up call and that a domestic military response should not become the norm.
“I believe that we in America should not get used to, or accept uniformed service members of any variety having to be put in a position where they are having to secure people inside the United States of America,” Carden said.
“While we are glad to do it and honored to do it, this is a sign of the times that we need to do better as a country and we ought to look at this as a forcing function for our country to do better. We stand ready to do this mission anytime we are called on to do it, but I pray I never have to do it again,” he said.
The activations hit National Guard units that currently have forces deployed overseas and have assigned thousands of members to COVID-19 relief over the last two months.
The North Carolina National Guard in a statement Sunday said it had activated 450 service members, noting that “many of the mobilized Guardsmen are the same citizen-soldiers that for over two months have helped their fellow North Carolinians across the state, distributing food, essential household items and conducting COVID-19 testing during the pandemic.”
Trump blames Antifa
In a series of tweets, Trump said he would designate the decentralized activist group Antifa as “terrorists,” blamed Democratic governors and mayors for allowing them to congregate, and attempted to link the chaos to his presumptive Democratic challenger for president, former Vice President Joe Biden.
“Get tough Democrat Mayors and Governors,” Trump wrote. “These people are ANARCHISTS. Call in our National Guard NOW. The World is watching and laughing at you and Sleepy Joe. Is this what America wants? NO!!!”
Some Democratic leaders are pushing back. Evoking the president’s response to a neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said on Sunday that the nation would be better off if Trump remained quiet.
“He speaks and he makes it worse,” Bottoms said on CNN’s “State of the Union” program. “There are times when you should just be quiet. And I wish that he would just be quiet.”
Attorney General William Barr also blamed Antifa for the violence that he defined as domestic terrorism.
“With the rioting that is occurring in many of our cities around the country, the voices of peaceful and legitimate protest have been hijacked by violent radical elements,” Barr said in a statement. “The violence instigated and carried out by Antifa and other similar groups in connection with the rioting is domestic terrorism and will be treated accordingly.”
The White House signaled that Trump would not make a national address on Sunday, telling the press just before noon that he would make no public appearances.
Cities and towns across the country – from Miami, Columbia and Charlotte to Kansas City, Lexington and Sacramento — witnessed scenes of heated clashes between demonstrators and police Saturday night. Protesters gathered again on Sunday in several cities, and law enforcement braced for another night of potential unrest.
In Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered a curfew from 11 p.m. Sunday to 6 a.m. Monday.
National Guard bureau spokeswoman April Cunningham said almost all the National Guard forces responding to the protests are currently under state active duty – paid for by the state and under the control of state governors, although that could change.
Cunningham said the activated National Guard forces are “here to help restore order as we support law enforcement, protect lives and property in the communities of which we are members, and to ensure the right to safely and peacefully protest.”
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the agency was sending agents to assist cities that were facing ongoing protests.
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection is currently deploying officers, agents and aviation assets across the country at the request of our federal, state and local partners confronting the lawless actions of rioters. CBP carries out its mission nationwide, not just at the border, consistent with federal laws and policies,” the statement said.
The Department of Defense announced Saturday it had put a few active duty military police units on a four-hour alert status — meaning those federal forces could be tapped to go if requested, but no request had been received as of Sunday morning.
Active duty forces under federal control that are deployed on U.S. soil are strictly prohibited by the Posse Comitatus Act from conducting law enforcement activity. However, that role could change if the president invokes the Insurrection Act, which would allow federal forces to engage in law enforcement.
The National Guard, while under state control, may support some law enforcement activities, including manning roadblocks and checkpoints, and providing crowd control and site security.
Cunningham said the “rules for the use of force vary from state-to-state. In all cases, state and local law enforcement agencies remain responsible for security.”
Unrest over the death of Floyd arrived at Trump’s doorstep on Saturday evening, with vandalism and looting of restaurants and businesses near the White House.
Shattered glass from destroyed windows littered the sidewalks downtown in the nation’s capital, where city workers on Sunday morning were cleaning up the damage. Buildings along the streets closest to the White House bore profanity addressed at Trump and the police, as well as messages in support of Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement.
In remarks at a SpaceX rocket launch of American astronauts on Saturday at Cape Canaveral, Trump said Floyd’s death was a “grave tragedy” that had filled Americans with “horror, anger, and grief.” Trump said he had spoken to the Floyd family and implored Americans not to “loot, rob, attack, and menace” in their quest for justice.
“We will stand with the family of George Floyd with the peaceful protesters and with every law-abiding citizen who wants decency, civility, safety, and security,” he said. “We are working toward a more just society, but that means building up, not tearing down; joining hands, not hurling fists; standing in solidarity, not surrendering to hostility.”
Updates with D.C. mayor ordering curfew..
This story was originally published May 31, 2020 at 1:32 PM.
