As violent demonstrations rock the nation in the wake of George Floydâs death, Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) says President Donald Trump is âfuelingâ the outrage and violence.
âDonald Trump is scum for fueling racist hate and violence in our country,â Markey said in a tweet on Monday afternoon.
Markeyâs comments come as protesters have taken to the streets in all 50 states to voice their outrage at the death of Floyd, an unarmed black man who died after he was pinned to the grown by a police officer who placed his knee on Floydâs neck for several minutes.
Markey is not alone in his criticism of Trumpâs rhetoric, as IJR reported.
Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker (D) urged the president to tone down his rhetoric during a call with the nationâs governors. He said, âItâs been inflammatory.â
âWe have to call for calm. We have to have police reform called for. Weâve called out our national guard and our state police, but the rhetoric thatâs coming out of the White House is making it worse,â he added.
Trump has been criticized for a series of tweets he sent out in recent days. After police clashed with law enforcement outside the White House on Friday night, âGreat job last night at the White House by the U.S. @SecretService. They were not only totally professional, but very cool. I was inside, watched every move, and couldnât have felt more safe.â
âBig crowd, professionally organized, but nobody came close to breaching the fence. If they had, they would have been greeted with the most vicious dogs, and most ominous weapons, I have ever seen. Thatâs when people would have been really badly hurt, at least. Many Secret Service agents just waiting for action,â he added.Â
While many were hoping that Trump would deliver a national address to try to help quell the violence, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany appeared to pour cold water on that idea.Â
âHe has routinely addressed, in his remarks less than 48 hours ago, the issue of law and order in our streets. Heâs issued several statements,â she said when asked about a potential Oval Office address.
Additionally, McEnany said, âA national Oval Office address is not going to stop Antifa.â
âWhatâs going to stop Antifa is action. And this president has committed to acting on this,â she added.
