DC Mayor Bowser calls for prosecutions after recent unrest in city

 

Muriel Bowser, the Democrat mayor from Washington, D.C., sent an open letter to the U.S. attorney in the district, urging him to advance the “prosecutions of those responsible for assaulting police officers, destroying property and undermining the safety” of peaceful protesters.

The letter to U.S. Attorney Michael Sherwin comes after violent protests that seemed to reignite on Thursday—the final night of the Republican National Convention where six officers were reportedly hospitalized after violent clashes. The unrest continued and police said they made 14 arrests between Sunday afternoon and early Monday.

Bowser, who has publicly clashed with President Trump over protests in the city, said in the letter that “it is critical that when these violent offenders are taken into custody, their cases are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

She said she was “dismayed” that the office declined to prosecute “41 of the 42 rioting arrests” made in the district earlier this month. She also called out the office for declining 28 of 63 affidavits “in support of arrest and search warrants” related to these violent protests.

“This mirrors a disturbing pattern we have also identified in homicide cases, where our records reveal 18 warrants that are currently pending with your office awaiting action,” the letter read. “I believe we both recognize the grave threat created by allowing homicides to remain open.”

Police Chief Pete Newsham supported Bowser, noting a backlog of cases, Fox 5 DC reported.

Bowser said at a press conference on Monday that outside agitators were responsible for the recent unrest. Of the 27 arrests from Thursday to Monday, 70 % were from outside the district, NPR reported.

Sherwin’s office responded to Bowser in a lengthy statement, Mayor Muriel Bowser’s public statement today related to the United States Attorney’s Office reluctant to prosecute “68 outstanding arrest warrants” is patently false and serves no purpose other than to pass blame and foster innuendo.  Since the protests began, this Office has never turned down a single case for prosecution in which there was sufficient evidence to support probable cause."

Donald Trump Jr. says Democrats would rather people 'rob someone's store' than 'open up your store'

 

As protest violence rises in America’s cities, it’s become clear Democrats have lost all control of their party, Donald Trump, Jr. told “Hannity” on Monday.

"It's the Democrats in America right now that [think] it's OK for you to rob someone’s store,” he said. “But if you open up your store to put food on your table, you're going to go to jail. You're going to be arrested. You're going to lose your business license. That's the Democrats’ America because they have lost total control to the radical left.”

The president's eldest son added that Democrats will continue to ignore the violence because it's their “liberal privilege” and the party hierarchy will do “whatever it takes” to protect Joe Biden.

“He spent his entire career destroying American manufacturing, destroying the middle class, shipping our American dream abroad to China, whether it's [with the] TPP [Trans-Pacific Parternship], NAFTA, permanent trade status for China at the World Trade Organization, all of these things that literally destroyed the American dream,” Trump Jr. said. “Our only export was your American dream. And Joe Biden and his policies shipped that stuff to China.”

In addition to Biden's poor record, Trump Jr. pointed out, the former vice president “can’t remember where he is 50% of the time.”

“After half a century in D.C., you would think you'd be able to communicate with people, certainly if you want the nuclear football,” he said. “What’s going on is a disgrace ... The media has totally abdicated their responsibility to educate the American public on both sides. Instead, they've decided to be activists for the left-wing mob. They will do whatever they can to protect Joe Biden."

The president's son added that having spent four months in quarantine to research his new book, "Liberal Privilege," he is certain that "no one believes" Biden is in charge.

"They know he's a sock puppet for the left," he added. "So they can get Kamala and Bernie and AOC and those crazy policies. And you don't have to believe me because it's on Joe Biden's website ... This is a radical leftist agenda using Joe Biden as a fake moderate to sell it."

Trump suggests 'some very stupid rich people' are funding protest groups, rioters at RNC and across US

 

President Trump told Fox News' Laura Ingraham in an exclusive interview Monday night that he believes demonstrations outside the White House on the final night of the Republican National Convention last week were bankrolled by "some very stupid rich people."

Trump added on "The Ingraham Angle" that an RNC attendee had traveled to Washington "on a plane from a certain city, and in the plane it was almost completely loaded with thugs wearing these dark uniforms, black uniforms with gear and this and that."

The president declined to say who had told him the story, but promised Ingraham he would reveal it "sometime."

"This person was coming to the Republican National Convention and there were like seven people in the plane [with] this person, and then a lot of people were on the plane to do big damage," Trump insisted. "This is all happening."

The president added that "people you've never heard of, people in the dark shadows" may be facilitating much of the left's activism.

"The money is coming from some very stupid rich people [who] have no idea that if their thing ever succeeded, which it won't, they will be thrown to the wolves like you've never seen before," he said.

Trump also criticized corporations who have supported the Black Lives Matter organization, saying they were taking "the easiest path. That's a very dangerous path.

"Black Lives Matter is a Marxist organization," the president said. "You remember [them chanting] 'Pigs in a blanket, fry them like bacon' [in 2015].

"That was the first time I ever heard of Black Lives Matter. I said, 'That's a terrible name, it's so discriminatory.' It's bad for Black people, it's bad for everybody and all of a sudden it becomes like sort of -- although now if you look, it's gone way down because people are tired of this stuff, what's going on."

Later in the interview, Trump told Ingraham that if he wasn't president, "you would have riots like you've never seen" in response to Joe Biden's assertion that rioting and violence in cities across America is a hallmark of "Donald Trump's America."

"So if it weren't 'Donald Trump's America,' to just use the expression, as I'm president, you would have riots like you've never seen. The Democrats have lost control of the radical left ..." Trump said. "Don't forget, Biden wasn't going to come out of his basement until the election. Now, he had to because the polls are so good for me. Now, he had to because the polls are different."

The president also slammed Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler as "incompetent" after the Democrat blamed Trump for the violent confrontation that led to the killing of a Patriot Prayer supporter in the Oregon city over the weekend.

"I've offered to send in the National Guard. I've offered to send in anybody they want," Trump said. "I could put that [unrest] out in 45 minutes and it would stop. And I think the people of Portland and the people of Oregon, I know it's a liberal state -- considered liberal -- they're tired of it. They're tired of having, of living with this curse."

The president added that he does not want his supporters to get involved in confrontations with left-wing protesters, but would rather they "leave it to law enforcement.

"But my supporters are wonderful, hardworking, tremendous people," Trump added. "And they turn on the television set and they look at a Portland or they look at a Kenosha before I got involved and stopped it."

Trump also responded to Wisconsin Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who called on the president to scrap his planned trip to Kenosha to inspect the damage from rioting that followed the Aug. 23 police shooting of Jacob Blake.

"[I'm going] because I am a tremendous fan of law enforcement and I want to thank the law enforcement. They've done a good job," he said. "And when the governor says that I shouldn't come or he'd prefer that I not come. I'm the one that called him and said, 'Tony, you got to bring out the National Guard.' [And he said] 'Well, I don't really want to do it.

Turning to the coronavirus pandemic, Ingraham asked Trump, "If you had to do it all again, would you put [Dr. Anthony] Fauci front and center every day in charge of the [White House] coronavirus task force?

"I disagree with a lot of what he said," Trump answered. "He said keep [travel] open for China. That was a big mistake. And he admits it.

"I just, I get along with him, but every once in a while he'll come up with one that I say, 'Where did that come from?' I inherited him. He was here. He was part of this huge piece of [the] machine."

Mayor Wheeler Cartoons

 

President Trump slams Portland Mayor Wheeler over recent violence

 

A man is treated by medics after being shot during a confrontation on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Paula Bronstein)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 2:50 PM PT – Sunday, August 30, 2020

On Sunday, Democrat Mayor Ted Wheeler gave an update on the recent clashes in his city. During the press briefing, he was quick to blame President Trump for the ongoing violence.

The mayor claimed political division in the U.S. was the president’s fault.

In recent days, the president has urged local authorities to request federal aid amid destructive riots and looting. He responded to Wheeler’s remarks by slamming the mayor’s own lack of action to restore order.

“Ted Wheeler, the wacky radical left, do nothing Democrat Mayor of Portland, who has watched great death and destruction of his city during his tenure, thinks this lawless situation should go on forever,” President Trump wrote on Twitter. “Portland will never recover with a fool for a mayor.”

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“The only way you will stop the violence in the high crime Democrat run cities is through strength,” he added.

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler speaks to Black Lives Matter protesters on Wednesday, July 22, 2020, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

This came just one day after a man was shot and killed in downtown Portland. The incident reportedly occurred Saturday night following clashes between “Black Lives Matter” protesters and a group of President Trump’s supporters.

A huge caravan of around 600 vehicles rolled through the streets of the downtown area as part of the “Trump 2020 Cruise Rally” in Portland. They were later confronted by a group of anti-police protesters.

According to police, the caravan left the area early in the night. However, almost immediately after they dispersed, several gunshots were reported.

Officers explained they arrived on scene within one minute and tried to resuscitate the gunshot victim. Despite their efforts, he did not survive.

President Donald Trump supporters attend a rally and car parade Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, from Clackamas to Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Paula Bronstein)

Portland police made at least 10 arrests during Saturday night’s disturbances.

Local law enforcement has not yet released a description of the suspect, but they are planning to use related posts on social media as evidence during the investigation. Authorities have also asked anyone with information or firsthand footage to come forward.

Violent crime continues in Chicago after deadly weekend shootings

                                                                         She's a big Joke 👎

Mayor Lori Lightfoot speaks at a news conference in Chicago on Aug. 5, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune via AP)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 1:40 PM PT – Sunday, August 30, 2020

Five people are dead and 14 were injured, including two police officers, following at least a dozen weekend shootings in Chicago. Early Sunday morning, police officers responded to one of those shootings following reports of an armed man on the West Side.

When officers arrived, the gunman opened fire, hitting two officers before a third arrived. The suspect was then shot and wounded.

30 Fastest Shrinking Cities In America: City In Illinois Tops The List?

Both officers are expected to recover. The suspect is in critical, but stable condition.

“This was another instance where our brave officers took someone off the street, who had a very dangerous weapon and could have been wreaking havoc in a neighborhood,” stated Mayor Lori Lightfoot. “So that neighborhood, our neighborhood, is safer because of the heroic work of these two officers.”

Police are still investigating the other shootings.

 

Ken Buck doubles down on Rand Paul's call for investigation into funding of violent protests

 

Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., on Sunday called for a Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into the funding of recent violent protests that have sprung up across the country, echoing statements made by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who was recently attacked while with his wife during the Republican National Convention.

"The Justice Department needs to open an investigation into who is funding these violent riots," Buck tweeted.

Buck had first addressed the issue after Paul and his wife Kelley were accosted while returning from the RNC, on the way back to their hotel.

"If the Tea Party threatened a Democratic Senator and assaulted police officers like this, it would be leading CNN," the Colorado Republican wrote on Friday. "Every conservative politician would be asked to condemn it. Where is the outrage?"

Paul commented on the issue in an opinion piece for Fox News published on Saturday.

He revealed some of the protesters were actually staying in the same hotel -- and on the same floor -- as he and his wife. Some were even as close as the next room.

"They were talking about their mob activities and even saying they thought we were here on this floor," Paul wrote. "We had to develop a 3 a.m. plan with Capitol Police to get to safety."

"My question is: Who are these people?," he continued. "Who paid for their hotel rooms? Who flew them in? Law enforcement needs to look at the funding of violent criminal activity like this. And national Democrats need to confront it. It’s organized. It’s paid for. It’s violent. It’s not about Black lives or any lives; it’s about anarchy and destruction."

The GOP senator added, "The American people are starting to catch on and grow tired of it. So I ask Democratic presidential nominee former Vice President Joe Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris this: Will you stand up finally and denounce this violence and destruction? Will you quit inciting it and urge other leaders to do the same?"

Paul's wife also penned an op-ed -- for the Washington Examiner -- describing the events as the basis for "a terrifying dystopian novel."

"The mob swarmed me and my husband, Sen. Rand Paul, in a tight circle, screaming expletives, threats, and shouting, 'Say her name,'" Kelley wrote. "We rushed up to two police officers, and I believe that is the only thing that kept us from being knocked to the ground. Even pressed against the officers, we were greatly outnumbered."

She then accused The Associated Press of misrepresenting her husband's account of the attack and said it was absurd of the media outlet to say Paul lacked evidence or proof, to back up his story.

"The Associated Press is reporting that Rand used the word 'attack' to describe our ordeal 'without evidence,'" Kelley added, "This is disgusting and utter proof of their bias. When you are surrounded by throngs of people screaming in your face and preventing you from getting away, that is an attack."

Wisconsin's Gov. Tony Evers tells Trump not to visit Kenosha

  

President Trump is not welcome in Wisconsin, at least not if you're asking Gov. Tony Evers.

Evers, a Democrat who has been critical of Trump, urged the president to reconsider traveling on Tuesday to Kenosha, where recent protests against police brutality have exploded into deadly riots in recent days.

“I, along with other community leaders who have reached out, are concerned about what your presence will mean for Kenosha and our state," Evers wrote in a letter to Trump. "I am concerned your presence will only hinder our healing. I am concerned your presence will only delay our work to overcome division and move forward together,” Evers wrote in the letter, obtained by The Associated Press.

Trump announced he would head to Kenosha to inspect the damage caused by riots. Several businesses have been vandalized and some buildings and multiple car lots burned during the unrest.

Trump will be meeting with law enforcement officers, White House spokesman Judd Deere announced.

"The White House has been humbled by the outreach of individuals from Kenosha who have welcomed the President’s visit and are longing for leadership to support local law enforcement and businesses that have been vandalized," Deere wrote in reply to Evers. "President Trump looks forward to visiting on Tuesday and helping this great city heal and rebuild."

The protests in Kenosha, which followed several in bigger cities around the nation, started this week after 29-year-old Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot seven times on Aug. 23, allegedly by Kenosha police Officer Rusten Sheskey. Video seen on social media shows Sheskey shooting at Blake as he reached into his car, where Wisconsin officials later said a knife was found. The shooting left Blake paralyzed from the waist down.

“Well, I’m looking into it very strongly. I’ll be getting reports,” the president said in an interview in New Hampshire Friday. “It was not a good sight. I didn’t like the sight of it, certainly, and I think most people would agree with that.”

The shooting of Blake sparked days of demonstrations and riots that resulted in the deaths of two protesters last Tuesday. Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, is accused of fatally shooting two men with an AR-15-style rifle.

Earlier Sunday, Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, also expressed concerns about Trump’s visit. “I don’t know how, given any of the previous statements that the president made, that he intends to come here to be helpful. And we absolutely don’t need that right now,” Barnes said in an interview with CNN.

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, asked President Trump to reconsider traveling on Tuesday to Kenosha, Wis., the scene of recent protests against police brutality, in a letter Sunday. (AP)

Trump, who has denounced protesters as “thugs” while sharply defending police, has throughout the summer cast American cities under liberal leadership as under siege by violent and lawless anarchy. Protesters have rallied against police brutality and racial injustice in a series of events that began after the May 25 death of George Floyd while in custody of Minneapolis police.  While many of the demonstrations have been peaceful, rioting and looting has broken out in Chicago, Seattle, Portland, New York and other cities, including Kenosha.

With about nine weeks until Election Day, conservatives see an aggressive “law and order” message as the best way for the president to turn voters against his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, and regain the support of suburban voters, particularly women.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Riots Protest Cartoons

 

2nd Iowa judge backs GOP, rules ballot requests invalid

 

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A second Iowa judge has ruled in favor of President Donald Trump’s campaign and ordered a county to invalidate at least 14,000 absentee ballot requests.

In his ruling issued Friday evening, Judge Patrick Tott found that Woodbury County elections commissioner Patrick Gill acted improperly when he sent absentee ballot request forms to 57,000 registered voters that had their personal information filled in. About 14,000 have been returned so far.

The Trump campaign, the Republican National Committee, the Iowa Republican Party and other GOP groups filed lawsuits against three Iowa counties, arguing they were trying to enhance voting security. Democrats have said Republicans want to limit mail-in voting, noting Trump has repeatedly said without proof that such voting was open to fraud.

Gill added the information to make it easier for voters to apply for absentee ballots, but the judge ruled it violated a directive from Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, who ordered that forms be left blank when mailed to voters to ensure statewide uniformity.

The decision came a day after another judge ruled that Linn County officials also had violated the secretary of state’s directive, voiding about 50,000 requests that had been returned.

County officials now must tell voters their ballot applications won’t be processed, so they can either resubmit forms or vote in-person on Nov. 3.

A hearing over a similar lawsuit is planned next week in Johnson County.