PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The mayor of Portland is demanding that President Donald Trump remove militarized federal agents he deployed to the city after some detained people on streets distant from federal property they were sent to protect.
Democratic Gov. Kate Brown said Trump is looking for a confrontation in the hopes of winning political points elsewhere.
"This political theater from President Trump has nothing to do with public safety. The President is failing to lead this nation. Now he is deploying federal officers to patrol the streets of Portland in a blatant abuse of power by the federal government," Brown wrote on Twitter. "I told Acting Secretary Wolf that the federal government should remove all federal officers from our streets. His response showed me he is on a mission to provoke confrontation for political purposes. He is putting both Oregonians and local law enforcement officers in harm’s way.
"This, coming from the same President who used tear gas to clear out peaceful protesters in Washington, DC to engineer a photo opportunity. Trump is looking for a confrontation in Oregon in the hopes of winning political points in Ohio or Iowa," she added.
The protests following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis have often devolved into violent clashes between smaller groups and the police. The unrest has caused divisions in a city that prides itself on its activism and progressive reputation.
