Kayleigh McEnany: Portland mayor refusing to 'admit that he lost control of his city'

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McEnany: There's no place for violence in our streets

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Trump's plan to send law enforcement to major cities amid unrest.

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said on Monday that though other officials have requested the help of federal law enforcement to deter violence, Portland, Ore., is lagging in that respect.

“What we’ve seen in Portland, however, is a mayor who is unwilling to admit that he lost control of his city,” McEnany told “Outnumbered Overtime.”

McEnany continued, “A mayor who is saying, I don’t need the help of federal law enforcement, while you have these rioters trying to burn down a courthouse, set a police building on fire, hurl pigs feet, attack officers and threaten police officers and citizens alike,” McEnany said.

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The city commissioner in Portland, Ore., has called on Mayor Ted Wheeler to surrender authority over the police department, accusing him “putting our community in danger.”

In a series of statements and Twitter messages, City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty accused the Portland Police Bureau – which Wheeler oversees – of collaborating with the federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in what she described as an “aggressive clampdown of peaceful protest.”

In one post, Hardesty refers to federal officers as “45’s goon squad” – an apparent reference to President Trump, the nation’s 45th president.

Hardesty’s remarks came Friday and Saturday, as Oregon’s largest city was in its second month of nightly unrest since the May 25 death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.

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McEnany said Kansas City has applied the “cooperative model” when working with the federal government.

“The DOJ announced Operation Legend. That was named after Legend Tallipharoah, a 4-year-old boy who lost his life. He was shot while sleeping ... The governor there was cooperative and said, 'I need the help of federal authorities,' and we’ve been there. The DOJ has been there to help and assist. ATF and the FBI and other entities. That’s the cooperative model.”