Police cleared a group peaceful protesters in front of St. John’s Church in Washington D.C. for a bible-toting publicity stunt.
Not only did they fire tear gas and rubber bullets on crowd that was exercising its right to peaceful assembly, but that action was done under personal direction of the Attorney General who promised greater action.
Senator John Cornyn, a member of the GOP leadership team, praised Trump’s action as did Senator Chuck Grassley, the most senior Republican in the Senate.
“We expect leadership from our President and particularly in times like this,” said Grassley.
We Expect Leadership
Yes, we do. And if you are looking for leadership, then please look to Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.
She delivered a brilliant yet simple unifying message.
Go Home, Go Home
- “You are not honoring the legacy of Martin Luther King Junior, running around with brown liquor breaking windows in this city. When you burn down this city you are burning down our community.”
- “If you want change in America go and register to vote. Show up at the polls. Do it in November.”
- “You are disgracing the life of George Floyd and every other person who has been killed in this country. We are better than this. Go home. Go home.“
In contrast, Trump promised crackdowns and used tear gas to disperse at crowd at St. John’s.
It was the first time Trump ever appeared at that Episcopal Church.
Send in the Airborne!
100% Correct. Thank you Tom! https://t.co/axdLX7kGNn
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 1, 2020
Lovely.
Let’s have paratroopers parachuting into riot zones.
That will sure teach the looters a thing or two.
OK they don’t have to jump in. Rather, it’s the idea that a show of force is the right encouragement.
De-escalation Keeps Protesters And Police Safer
Please consider De-escalation Keeps Protesters And Police Safer, but Departments Respond With Force Anyway.
Researchers have spent 50 years studying the way crowds of protesters and crowds of police behave — and what happens when the two interact. One thing they will tell you is that when the police respond by escalating force — wearing riot gear from the start, or using tear gas on protesters — it doesn’t work. In fact, disproportionate police force is one of the things that can make a peaceful protest not so peaceful. But if we know that (and have known that for decades), why are police still doing it?
Three Reasons We Still Do It
- Alleged “Law and Order” presidents encourage more violence. They believe (incorrectly) that it serves their purpose.
- Cops Kill Because We Gave Them The Legal Framework To Do It
- Public Unions
Why do Cops Kill?
The American Conservative explains Cops Kill Because We Gave Them The Legal Framework To Do
“Focusing on racial bias obscures the fundamental problem: The Supreme Court has effectively given police a license to shoot, pummel, or falsely arrest ill-fated citizens across the nation.”
Public Unions
Factor in public unions who want more police to preserve order. The best way to get more police is to have more violence.
The Last Temptation of Trump
Please consider the Last Temptation of Trump
As he took up his post before the church, which was partially boarded up after a minor fire that broke out during a recent protest, Mr. Trump set his face in a stony scowl and held up a black Bible, tightly closed. “Is it your Bible?” a reporter shouted. “It’s a Bible,” Mr. Trump said neutrally. The entire routine was vulgar, blunt: There Mr. Trump was, holding aloft this mute book — neither opened, cited, nor read from — in the shadow of a vandalized church, claiming the mantle of righteousness.
Saint John Paul II National Shrine
On Tuesday, Trump visited the Saint John Paul II National Shrine for another staged photo op.
In short order, the Washington Archbishop Denounced the Visit to Catholic Shrine as ‘Baffling’ and ‘Reprehensible’.
“I find it baffling and reprehensible that any Catholic facility would allow itself to be so egregiously misused and manipulated in a fashion that violates our religious principles, which call us to defend the rights of all people even those with whom we might disagree,” said Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory in a statement.
President Not Baffling
We are talking about President Trump, the biggest narcissist on the planet, who routinely offends anyone with an ounce of common sense and apologizes to no one for anything.
Senate is Somewhat Baffling
In contrast to Trump, one might have expected some Senators, especially those whose term come up in 2020, to denounce or at least disagree with Trump’s message.
Alas, only Ann Coulter, not any Senators, seems to have caught on.
Credit Where Credit is Due
Credit where credit is due: https://t.co/kHtDnWdQ4v
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) June 2, 2020
Coulter on Donald Trump’s America
Day 5 of looting, vandalism and riots in Donald Trump’s America. https://t.co/HZA8hmwApD
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) June 2, 2020
Straw Man Attempt to Defend Trump
Idiotic Strawman
States the obvious
Gets 18,000+ RetweetsThis is nothing more than a foolish attempt to justify stupidity on the part of Trump. https://t.co/16x03zZix9 pic.twitter.com/4ZztmXlOLE
— Mike “Mish” Shedlock (@MishGEA) June 2, 2020
Straw Man: “If you are more upset at President @realDonaldTrump walking to St. John’s church, than at the rioters who set it on fire, you are part of the problem!”
My Reply: “This is nothing more than a foolish attempt to justify stupidity on the part of Trump.”
TDS Accusers Pour it On
This post will no doubt bring about accusations of TDS.
Most of the TDS accusers are themselves afflicted. They do not know right from wrong.
Trump says one thing one day, and another the next and the bulk of the Ever-Trumpers praise both things.
Predictions are Neither Praise nor Approval
I criticized Obama heavily, then Trump heavily, and next Biden heavily as I confidently predict Biden will win the election if he stays healthy.
But predictions are not approvals.
Fake Patriots
I have been accused of being extreme right wing and extreme left wing.
However, I do not like either Biden or Trump and will probably vote for neither.
I just state my beliefs about what is right and wrong and I am sickened by fake patriots who will never criticize the leader of their party.
Leadership
Meanwhile, if you are in search of leadership, it’s time to stop pretending you will ever get it much of it from Trump.
If you want leadership, look to the Atlanta mayor.
Biden needs a vice president who is 1) a woman 2) African-American and 3) tough on crime. I didn’t think it could be done, but here she is! https://t.co/enFJOm7oIB
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) June 1, 2020
Please play the video in Coulter’s Tweet.
Who is the Perfect Running Mate for Joe Biden?
For discussion of Coulter’s pick, please see Who is the Perfect Running Mate for Joe Biden?
This is not to say the mayor is perfect. I know little about her other than she gave a phenomenal speech.
Hillary, Kamala Harris, and Elizabeth Warren are all lightning rods about which we know a lot.
Knowing little about someone is a huge advantage now.
The country does not need another divisive lightning rod. Trump has proven that.
Someone whom no one can easily attack is the correct choice for Biden.
Mish
Please read Matthew 5:3–12.
Thanks Mish, you are better than ever.
I love the fact, if he even owns one, that he had to borrow a Bible to get the photo. What the model Christian! Pandering to evangelicals with a shallow photo op. This is even more cheesy and worse than hugging/humping the American flag.
“Looters murdered David Dorn
CNN refuses to say his name
— Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec)”
Who was David Dorn?
Tucker Carlson: “For 38 years David Dorn was a police officer in the city of St. Louis. No one ever accused Dorn of racism, he was black. He’s dead now, he was murdered last night by the mob.”
Why did CNN refuse to say his name? Is it because David Dorn doesn’t fit CNN’s narrative? Shouldn’t all black lives matter to CNN?
“De-escalation Keeps Protesters And Police Safer”
Two lawyers were arrested for fire bombing in New York City. They were not interested in de-escalation.
“@JonathanTurley
The defense case against the two attorneys accused of throwing the Molotov cocktail just got even worse with an allegation that they were trying to distribute the bottles to others.”
Zero Hedge headline: “We came to riot”: Illinois man arrested with cache of explosives.
From another story:
Chicago mayor Lightfoot: “There is no doubt. This was an organized effort last night,” she said. “There were clearly efforts to subvert the peaceful process and make it into something violent.”
“And in Baltimore, law enforcement officials were racing to dismantle “mounds of bricks and bottles” that had been staged in downtown Baltimore…”
There were neatly stacked bricks where protesters were going to be, in a number of cities. Black owned business were among those that were looted the rioters.
“If you want leadership, look to the Atlanta mayor.”
I remember when recently Cuomo was a darling of the Democrats who were suddenly wanting him to be their presidential candidate, because of how he spoke at his Covid press conferences. That seemed to wear off quickly as the nursing home death crisis he caused, came to light.
The Atlanta mayor gave a nice speech, but it is the arrival of the national guard and the L.A. police getting around to making a number of arrests and seriously enforcing a curfew, that has put a crimp in the looting and the arson.
“The silent majority has spoken. A new Morning Consult Poll finds that 58% of Americans want the military brought in to help police deal with riots, with 30% opposing the measure.”
It was Trump that advocated for that. The Democrats are supporting ANTIFA.
Oh, and Susan Rice said the riots were right out of the Russian play book.
” Speaking to WTOP in Washington, D.C., Tuesday morning, though, the Park Police defended themselves, correcting reports that they fired tear
gas into the crowd of protesters and claiming that protests outside the White House had been far from peaceful, with demonstrators hurling
bottles and rocks at members of law enforcement and scaling national monuments.”
“A source says tear gas was never used — instead smoke canisters were deployed, which don’t have an uncomfortable irritant in them,”
WTOP reporter Neil Augenstein claimed on social media.” And, the source says Park Police didn’t know President Trump would be walking
across the park several minutes later.”
One thing i noticed on the KTLA “News” last night was that they had no video footage of police clearing protesters from the church. Rather odd, don’t you think?
Pretty sad Mish believed the fake news and repeated it.
From Australian news
….US riot police were broadcast live on air using aggressive force to push and knock down an Australian reporter and her cameraman as they covered the Black Lives Matter protests in Washington DC, prompting an investigation by the Australian embassy.
Amelia Brace, a reporter for Australian television network Channel 7, was broadcasting from the White House with cameraman Timothy Myers when police ploughed into the crowd with riot shields, firing rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse them.
Footage of the police barrelling at the camera and shoving the news team was viewed over a million times in a matter of hours. In another angle of the incident filmed by a protester, an officer can be seen hitting Ms Brace on the back with a baton….
So much for “it didn’t happen”, “there was no tear gas”, “it was a violent protest”. There is video.
The international reputation of the US continues on its downward trajectory.
So much winning, or did he mean “whining”, or for the Brits, so much “whingeing”
Is it possible that today’s rioters are the new Fifth Column, recruited with the goal of disrupting recovery from Covid-19. Two low-probability events may be a coincidence–albeit with an extremely low-probability. Back-to-back with intense emotional factors reeks of external forces at work.
Regarding tear gas, I smell a rat, much the same as the Covington kid. By the time we realize, the damage is done.
Consider:
Left wing favours big government, high taxes, collective responsibility
Right wing favours small government and low taxes, individual responsibility
When you are healthy and wealthy, you act as an individual, rely on your own resources and don’t look to the government for help.
When you are not healthy and wealthy, you look to the government for help.
Therefore, for a left wing party to win, it only needs to create an atmosphere of fear, replete with tangible evidence of a threat to health and wealth. It does this by talking about love, tolerance and hope, while shutting down dissenting opinion for the good of the collective.
It seems to me that regardless of what the orange man does, the political left on both sides of The Atlantic is rapidly escalating the stakes and I have zero doubt that Antifa is in there stirring the pot.
I would not like to be a black man in America. But seriously, this has to stop, and if that means putting the 101st Airborne on the streets I am all for it. Stealing a TV or liquor and setting fire to stores is not legitimate protest.
I am reminded of the movie “The Siege” where dopey politicians begged for an army division to be sent into NYC to contain a terrorist uprising. The general, played by Bruce Willis, begs them to reconsider because the military is a blunt instrument. He finally is ordered in and, of course, it was a blunt instrument that crushed both the constitution and the uprising. As retired military officer I can think of no worse solution to this mess than using active duty military units to do police work.
Looking all this from far away, seems the USA can’t repair itself before it’s too late. Mish has recently spoken against Trump in a way that all bad is his fault. I don’t like his character either but is there a better alternative in sight? I see none. And when you go calling bible and church ridiculous you might also delete that “In God We Trust” part from everything. Yes? No?
Here is the best text so far I’ve come to read: link to takimag.com
Their hatred of Trump outweighs their love of their country.
Worst kind of tabloid journalism. Just part of the liberal mass media echo chamber. Take everything CNN says at face value and spread it around.
tRumpster thinks and behaves as if he is the King of the USA.
Nobody could be worse than him. This country probably needs a revolution.
Election is only a couple of months away. Why revolt if you can just vote him out.
Are you sure there will be an election ? I, for one, am not.
Three plus years ago, I predicted Trump would only have one term, and he would be under constant attack, becoming far worse as the election approaches. My reason: the Left cannot afford to have eight years without control; too many conservative judges and too many secrets would get out. Jeffery Epstein is one of the secrets–he’s dead. I wonder why? You want more secrets–FISA Court is packed with secrets.
My prediction is Trump will try to postpone the election with martial law if this goes into November. I always ruled out a Putin-type takeover of the system but it doesnt seem so far out of realm anymore. Interesting times indeed. I fear something truly bad is going to happen this summer with Trump in charge. Maybe it has to happen for America to hit bottom. Maybe we need a great conflagration before the catharsis.
Thinking this through: then, are you saying it would be a good thing for rioters to be present at the voting booths?
Would it be a good thing for white supremacists to be present as well ?
I wasn’t planning on voting for Trump much less Biden this election. I voted for Trump in 2016 and even gave him 20 bucks for his election. I will vote for him again. Why? The Democrats are supporting Antifa and this chaos. They are all silent and Biden is giving some lip service. I follow news from several sources and do not depend on main news channels to give you the truth. I think Trump could have done a better job defusing the situation, but Antifa and looters and general thugs don’t care about reason. This situation moved from protest to extremism in very short time. Their only role is to destroy. I support President Trump, our police, and use of troops and whatever measures to stop this chaos and destruction.
Then you’ll be voting for the losing candidate, and no doubt rejecting the outcome of that vote, because “muh feelings’
Please don’t forget your white hood and robe on your way out.
Said the Marxist devoted to rebuilding the USSR on American soil.
Trump and Biden don’t care about you. To move forward, you should start looking beyond red/blue because this system is obviously broken.
Cant handle the heat or pressure? Why are you afraid of a little violence ? Why do you think they are angry? Think hard. The President, the one you will vote for again if he makes it that far, all but said he wanted more violence. He used violent force to use a public space for himself. I too voted for Trump but I live in a heavily blue state so my vote didnt matter. It still wont in 2020 but Trump has proven to be a miserable failure when it comes to leading and bringing the country together and not ripping us apart.
Think of your vote as one more in the popular vote count he will lose. A tiny pinprick in his massive, tender ego. He’s obsessed with integers, after all.
I predict he goes down in a landslide and even loses states Republicans have traditionally won. His only hope is martial law.
The red and blue states are irreconcilable. One believes in God and moral absolutes; the other doesn’t. One cherishes life; the other death. One believes in the right to self-defense; the other in rioting and arson. One believes in liberty; the other in licentiousness. Obama could lead the blue states and Trump can lead the red states. No one can lead them all because there is no longer any common ground.
There may be said to be two classes of people in the world; those who constantly divide the people of the world into two classes, and those who do not. Both classes are extremely unpleasant to meet socially, leaving practically no one in the world whom one cares very much to know.
That’s some alternate universe you live in. There are still more people in the middle then the extremes. Please note I have moved around the country and lived in red states and blue. Turn off Fox news or any news and go interact with all kinds of people in your community.
I too live in a blue state but I refused to vote for either major party candidate as I have for the last 3 elections. My mistake in many ways and won’t be repeated – Trump almost turned our state red which, fortunately, I’m confident will not happen this year. Also, as much as I disliked Hillary I totally underestimated how totally unqualified, unsuited to any public office and dangerous that Trump has proven to be. To Quote the previous worst president ever (who now looks like freaking Abe Lincoln), “Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice and won’t get fooled again.”
I am now 100% in gold, distributed in several countries. Please, please let Biden win.
To be serious, none of this is new: link to salon.com
Mish, Your photo has the caption “Police used tear gas…… ” do you have ANY evidence that tear gas was used? Did you get your information from CNN?
After Trumps press conference yesterday I switched over to CNN to hear their spin and watched as CNN showed the crowds being dispersed. CNN started reporting teargas and rubber bullets were used to disperse the crowd and ran a “breaking news” banner with the same statement. I watched CNN until after the photo op,
never once did I see tear gas, none of the law enforcement had gas masks on, I also never saw any arms drawn only shields. Law enforcement used a few flash bang grenades but nothing more aggressive than a measured walk forward.
After Trumps photo op Erin Burnett was interviewing Governor Pritzker on a split screen and asked him about the peaceful protestors, that same second on the live shot showed a shirtless man swinging at the police, he was quickly subdued.
CNN is not a news organization anymore, all they broadcast is opinion you want to hear. They should change to CON ( cable opinion network)
Reported, show me evidence.
I don’t trust anything from CON ( cable opinion network)
That isn’t from cable. That’s from a church website. But you won’t trust that either, because it conflicts with what, for some reason, you need to believe.
The church had a reporter there? Do they have video? There were dozens of film crews and people with their cell phones recording, surely someone has video of tear gas and rubber bullets.
If your going to use these “facts” as the basis for your position show me the evidence
The church reporter interviewed the priest that got gassed… which you’d know if you read the article. You can google your own video, but no doubt you’ll claim those are all deepfakes made with advanced lizard people tech at the behest of George Soros, Bill Gates, and the Illuminati. I’m not wasting any more time on you.
So . Just to get things straight you have no video evidence??? Clown.
That was a reply to the Marxist Zardoz
The church members criticizing Trump I noticed so far are female, one calls it a photo op using her church, but I think Episcopal churches are congregational, or not ?
I’m just saying, it is not my argument, but equally criticising or inventing criticism of Trump this way is maybe not constructive or is itself hypocritical.
I’ll repeat – I’m just saying, to add dimension but not to argue.
As per Fox News on June 13th………
Secret Service walks back denial of using pepper spray on White House protesters
That looks like the same bible Clinton used when he went to church every Sunday with his forgiving wife, after he got caught burying the bone in a girl his daughters age.
Finally trumpty embraces tradition!
“If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
I see the ZH bus pulled up.
It’s short, which is neat, and from the looks of the occupants, the windows are chocolate flavored!
Baaaahahahahaha
I’ll bet most of the protesters don’t vote. About 40% of eligible voters don’t vote and young people are unlikely voters. I am disappointed Mish that you plan to throw away your vote/not vote. Because of people like you, our President focuses on 30% of the population. He intuitively knows that you can all be ignored because you’ll drop out.
Only 5% of the population decides who wins most national elections.
If you mean the 5% (or less) who fund the campaigns and tell people what to think
and do (e.g., television personalities, religious leaders), then I totally agree. The Murdochs come to mind. They are the ultimate king makers.
He’s holding that bible up like he thinks it’s gonna smite the unbelievers, with that fat kid tough guy look on his face. Pathetic.
“Three Reasons We Still Do It”
Anyone care to comment on which side of this is the conspiracy?
How credible… I’m totally convinced!
Hanlon’s Razor plus some politicking explains it pretty well, I think.
OMG at least 1 German has the courage to admit it. Courage? Yeah, ’cause any moron knows the epidemic is OVER. So, its not brains, its courage.
I’m glad Mish spends lots of time on Twitter cuz I don’t have any social media accounts… or the time to read it. Instead, I sat back watched social media become a disease from a distance.
We Americans simply excel when creating products that piss people. Social media, private equity, sharing economy “tech” companies, etc, etc.
Had enough of “winning” yet?
I’m trying to find out if Mayor Bottoms speech had any affect. Did Atlanta calm down?
At first glance this does look bad, but I wonder if anyone told President Trump ahead of time that the church where he was scheduled to have his photo taken had recently been cleared of people using tear gas? To be fair, he might not have known and he might not of approved of it had he known.@Mish may be doing a serious disservice tying these two moments together as though they are cause and effect.
The Park Police already said they didn’t and that they were responding to people throwing water bottles. Also said they didn’t use tear gas. – link to nypost.com
Yea, its a political appointee covering for his boss, we got it, move on.
Trump paid a scheduled visit to St. John Paul II shrine as a lead up to his signing an executive order later in the day protecting religious liberty. These bigots don’t care about the truth. All they want to do is criticize Trump. One of the lame brains frequently commenting on this site said the Rector of St. John’s criticized Trump for his unannounced visit to St. John’s. As it turns out the Rector belonged to another St. John’s church, not the one visited by Trump. What a bunch of lying critics!
I love Trump. WHY????? um, well, I ‘do’ real estate on the Left Coast. That flame haired gourd shut down the China planeloads like ‘right now’. Instead of those morons, the Mario Brothers,etc., on the Eastern Seaboard whose activities then and since have led to enormous loss of life, destruction of property, extension of lockdowns….need I or anyone else go on?
It is a myth that he shut down plane loads from China. He actually banned Chinese Nationals from entering the country on flights from China. He did nothing to stop non Chinese nationals. He left the gate half open which was admittedly better but a long way short of shutting down virus transmission from China. And the Eastern Seaboard virus strain primarily originated in Europe and he did not shut down flights from Europe until the damage was done. The bottom line is that Trump and his administration completely blew their response to COVID-19. They dithered and fumbled for the better part of 2 months originally stating that this was a hoax and it would be gone by April. Despite his administration being briefed about the dangers of a global pandemic back in late January.
History will not be kind to Trump’s presidency or the GOP sycophants who are too scared to stand up to him. The current bunch are a disgrace to the Republican Party.
This is the era of the armchair quarterback, greatly enhanced by mass media. Both sides manipulate any situation for political advantage. It bodes poorly for an effective solution to any problem.
so the Park Police says that they cleared the park to widen the perimeter and because the park protesters were throwing bottle and rocks. Trumps photo op happened later. Keep up the TDS
Got a link for that? Not Alex Jones, OAN, or some random nutbar outlet … something credible.
“Park Police acting Chief Gregory Monahan “
“The next acting chief of the U.S. Park Police has been accused of using his role to improperly have criminal charges dropped against defendants. Gregory T. Monahan is set to take on the role this week. “
Looks like he specializes in this sort of thing.
Leftist CookBook Lesson 1: attack the individual.
Yesterday he was ‘hiding’, now it’s a photo-opp. You TDS folks need to make up your minds.
Protesters come
trumpty hides in the basement with the lights off and hopes they’ll go away
People make fun of him on twitter for hiding in the basement
trumpty has people gassed, and has the priest run off, so he can have an absolutely terrible photo taken.
Have you accepted donald trump as your personal Lord and Savior?
There are shameful individuals who will criticize Trump whatever he does.
And there are stupid ones that have accepted him as their Lord and Saviour.
Ok Mish you’re getting tedious as are the protestors/late night thugs.
Get in the middle of things .
Now the only question is who lent him a Bible for the photo op?
Wasn’t it a copy of God for Dummies?
You won the Internet today ….. ROFL.
Ah yes. The man of prayer and inner struggle to learn righteousness.