President Trump sends more federal forces to Portland as violence escalates in US cities
Cities across the U.S. see a clear escalation in violence at protests for racial justice; Dan Springer reports from Seattle.
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani slammed Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler over his response to the violence and crime that has gripped his city, telling the "Fox News Rundown" podcast Wednesday that Wheeler "should have been fired 10 weeks ago."
"Anybody in America that wants to riot, go to Portland," Giuliani told host Dave Anthony. "You can riot like crazy. You can break open windows. You can steal liquor. You can steal dresses. You can steal televisions. And even if you get arrested, you'll be out in six hours.
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"Meanwhile, you've got a mayor who's shown support for you by rioting with you and trying to attack the federal building. He's trying to blame it on the federal government, which tells you how pathetic he is."
Wheeler has been heavily criticized by President Trump and other Republicans for his handling of the rioting that has followed since the May 25 death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody.
PORTLAND MAYOR TEAR-GASSED BY FEDERAL AGENTS, RIOT DECLARED
Matters came to a head last week, when Wheeler was heckled by protesters as he attempted to address a demonstration. The night ended in another riot, as Wheeler's security detail scuffled with protesters.
Giuliani, who is also President Trump's personal attorney, defended sending federal agents to Portland, and denied claims that their presence has exacerbated tensions.
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"The federal government didn't arrive until a week ago. That's [the rioting's] been going on for two months. And the federal government is doing just one thing and one thing alone. They are protecting the federal building they [the rioters] have vowed to take down and they have the appropriate law enforcement officers there to do it," Giuliani said. "They have not introduced the army. That's another complete lie by the lunatic left. They are using DEA agents, ATF agents and other civil law enforcement organizations."
The former New York mayor also took issue with descriptions of the agents as "secret police" by some critics.
"That's ridiculous. They're not secret police, [there's] nothing secret about them at all," he said. "They say they're in plainclothes. Well, of course they're in plainclothes. My most effective policemen [in New York] were in plainclothes ... Sometimes you want a uniform to deter somebody from doing it [crime]. Sometimes we're dealing with a more sophisticated problem. You want a police officer that can't be recognized, so we can observe the crime and then make the arrest.
"This is," Giuliani added, "a complete Democratic hoax."
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