Chinese official finds Trump 'very confusing,' says US warships at China's doorstep building tension

President Trump's inner circle is "very confusing" for foreign diplomatic officials in Washington to navigate, China's U.S. ambassador Cui Tiankai told "Fox News Sunday" in an exclusive wide-ranging interview.
Cui added that U.S. warships are "on the offensive" near China, days after a U.S. destroyer nearly collided with a Chinese military vessel in the South China Sea. The Pentagon said the Chinese ship came within 45 yards of the U.S. destroyer, in an intentionally "unsafe" maneuver.
Cui's comments come as Chinese President Xi Jinping and Trump prepare for a possible meeting at the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, next month, amid a rapidly escalating trade conflict between the two nations that some have called a new cold war.
Asked by host Chris Wallace whether Trump listens primarily to hardliners like trade director Peter Navarro -- who has characterized China as the economic "parasite of the world" -- or moderates like chief economic adviser Larry Kudlow and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Cui responded simply, "You tell me."
The envoy added that other ambassadors seemingly have the same issue. President Trump has repeatedly said he tries to avoid "telegraphing" his moves to foreign adversaries.
"Honestly, I’ve been talking to ambassadors of other countries in Washington, D.C., and this is also part of their problem," Cui said. "They don’t know who is the final decision-maker. Of course, presumably, the president will take the final decision, but who is playing what role? Sometimes it could be very confusing."
Trump, citing widespread intellectual property theft in China that cuts into the profits of U.S. companies doing business there, placed tariffs on approximately $200 billion of Chinese imports in September, following his imposition of significant tariffs on nearly $35 billion in Chinese goods in July. China quickly retaliated with $60 billion in tariffs of its own.
The White House has bipartisan support for hitting back at Chinese intellectual property theft. In an interview in June, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., ordinarily a fierce Trump critic, agreed with the administration's China policy and said that the country "takes total advantage" of the U.S.
“Not only do they steal our intellectual property, they keep our good companies out, and say the only way you’re going to be able to sell your American products in China … is if you come to China, make them there, and give us the techniques and intellectual property,” Schumer said.
And the president has insisted his tariffs are already having a major impact.
"Their economy has gone down very substantially, and I have a lot more to do if I want to do it," Trump told "Fox & Friends" last week. "They lived too well for too long and, frankly, I guess they think the Americans are stupid people. Americans are not stupid people. We were led badly when it came to trade."
WATCH: HAS US ENTERED NEW COLD WAR WITH CHINA?
But in his interview with Fox News, Cui denied that China permits or engages in widespread intellectual property theft, and said even the suggestion was an affront to the country's population.
"I think all of these accusations about how China has developed are groundless and not fair to the Chinese people," he told Wallace. "You see, China has 1.4 billion people. It would be hard to imagine that one-fifth of the global population could develop and prosper not by relying mainly on their own efforts, but by stealing or forcing some transfer of technology from others -- that’s impossible."

"It’s important to notice who started this trade war. We never want to have a trade war."
— China's U.S. ambassador Cui Tiankai

He added: "It’s important to notice who started this trade war. We never want to have a trade war, but if somebody started a trade war against us, we have to respond and defend our own interests."
Concerns have been raised that China, the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasurys, might start dumping its holdings as a way to pressure the United States in the trade dispute. But Mnuchin said this possibility didn't concern him because it would be contrary to Beijing's economic interests to start dumping its Treasury holdings, and would be "very costly" to China.
Top U.S. officials have warned that the ongoing conflict with China extends beyond trade. In Senate testimony on Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray said that "China, in many ways, represents the broadest, most complicated, most long-term counterintelligence threat we face."
He added that "Russia is ... fighting to stay relevant after the fall of the Soviet Union," while "China is fighting tomorrow's fight…and it affects every sector of our economy."
Vice President Pence, meanwhile, has accused China of trying to interfere with U.S. elections, including by targeting tariffs toward industries that support Trump and even spreading propaganda in U.S. media outlets.
In response, Cui effectively called the U.S. the aggressor in several spheres of influence. Chinese state-run media companies have recently bought newspaper inserts in U.S. newspapers to influence local opinion in favor of China.
"You see, Chinese media, they are just learning from America media to use all these means, to buy commercial pages from newspapers, to make their views known or to cover what is happening here," Cui said. "This is normal practice for all the media." (China does not generally permit foreign-owned media companies to buy such political inserts in its own domestic papers.)
WATCH: HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY WARNS CHINA ENGAGING IN 'UNPRECEDENTED' INFLUENCE CAMPAIGN AHEAD OF MIDTERMS
The envoy also said that Chinese warships, which harassed and nearly collided with a U.S. destroyer recently in the disputed South China Sea, had responded appropriately to an intervention on their "doorstep." Beijing has built up military fortifications on two contested Chinese man-made islands there despite pledging not to do so.
"Where the incident took place, you were right to say it was in South China Sea. So it’s at China’s doorstep," Cui told Wallace. "It’s not Chinese warships that are going to the coast of California, or to the Gulf of Mexico. It’s so close to the Chinese islands and it’s so close to the Chinese coast. So who is on the offensive? Who is on the defensive? This is very clear."
Cui said, however, that China would continue to "faithfully" implement sanctions against its longtime ally, North Korea, in order to restore stability to the region. He  said a "coordinated, phased, and step-by-step approach" to North Korean denuclearization is the best approach, mirroring the position of that country's leader, Kim Jong Un.
"How can you convince him to give up all the nuclear weapons without any hope that the U.S. would be following a more friendly policy towards him?" Cui asked.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was in Beijing last week, where top Chinese officials vowed to take "all necessary measures" to safeguard their country. They have since said that high-level communications continue between the two countries.
Still, there were signs tensions between China and the U.S. have eased somewhat in recent days. Global stock market indexes bounced back sharply Friday after their recent plunges, on word of the possible presidential meeting.
And reports have emerged that Mnuchin has advised against labeling China a currency manipulator — a status that could trigger penalties. The Chinese currency has been falling in value against the dollar in recent months, raising concerns that Beijing is devaluing its currency to make Chinese goods more competitive against U.S. products.
Mnuchin did not say this weekend what the forthcoming Treasury report, set to come out next week, will conclude about China's currency practices. In the past, Treasury has placed China on a watch-list but found that Beijing did not meet the threshold to be labeled a currency manipulator.
The Treasury secretary met Thursday with Yi Gang, head of China's central bank. "I expressed my concerns about the weakness of the currency." Mnuchin said.
Cui told Wallace that China, despite its ongoing spat with the U.S. on a variety of fronts, remains optimistic about November's planned meeting between Trump and Jinping. Kudlow, the chief White House economic adviser, said on "Fox News Sunday" that the one-on-one between the two leaders will "probably" happen.
"There’s a good mutual understanding and good working relationship between the two," Cui said. "I hope and I’m sure this will continue."
Fox News' Samuel Chamberlain, Chris Wallace and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

White male 'gun nuts' are 'biggest terrorist organization on the planet,' Tennessee Dem ally wrote online: report

Mark Brown

A spokesman for a Democratic group that is supporting former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen in his run for a U.S. Senate seat referred to “white male” gun owners as "Murican gun nuts" in response to a Facebook post asking people to identify “the biggest terrorist organization on the planet,” according to a report.
Mark Brown, communications director for Tennessee Victory 2018, a group backing Bredesen's run against Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn for the Senate seat occupied by retiring Republican Sen. Bob Corker, posted the comment in 2015, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
Brown's comment attracted zero likes, according to the report.
It was not the first time Brown made incendiary comments about Republicans.
In a July 31, 2017 post, Brown allegedly wrote, “Exactly, f--- “reaching out” to Trump voters. The idiots aren’t listening.”
In other posts, he has referred to President Trump as “Putin’s b---h,” “racist,” a “f---stik,” an “insane f---,” and a “F---ing moron.”

Mark Brown, a communications official for the Tennessee Democratic Party, has described Trump voters as "idiots."   (Facebook)

Brown’s brazen approach is at odds with Bredesen, who has painted himself as a moderate willing to reach across the aisle.
Bredesen broke with his party during the controversy surrounding Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual assault during his Senate confirmation hearings. In a TV interview, Bredesen said he would have supported Kavanaugh’s nomination if he were a senator because the allegations lacked sufficient evidence.
Those comments lost him the support of two prominent Democratic groups, MoveOn and Priorities USA. But Bredesen has attracted the support of pop singer Taylor Swift, who sharply criticized the GOP's Blackburn in an online post that preceded a sharp rise in voter registrations in the state. However, a new New York Times poll on Friday showed Blackburn leading Bredesen by 14 points.
In a recent campaign ad, the former governor referred to himself as a “lifelong gun owner” and a supporter of Second Amendment gun rights.
“As governor, I had an A rating from the NRA,” Bredesen said.
But the National Rifle Association called Bredesen’s ad “false” and “misleading.”
“Phil Bredesen is a ‘D’ rated candidate, and he will not protect our constitutional rights in Washington, D.C.,” said Chris W. Cox, chairman of the NRA’s Political Victory Fund, in a statement.
Bredesen has not publicly addressed Brown’s comments. In recent weeks the Senate candidate appeared at fundraiser that headlined ex-New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a staunch supporter of gun control.
Earlier in the campaign, Bredesen denounced Vice President Mike Pence’s “name-calling” because he endorsed Blackburn, and called him a “liberal.”
On Wednesday, Bredesen and Blackburn exchanged barbs in their second and final debate ahead of the November midterms. The outcome of the competitive red-state has attracted nationwide attention due to a 51-49 Republican majority at stake.

Alec Baldwin calls for ‘overthrow’ of Trump at Dem fundraiser in New Hampshire

Made in China.

MANCHESTER, N.H. – Less than 24 hours after reprising his Emmy Award-winning parody of President Trump on “Saturday Night Live,” Alec Baldwin took aim at the president again.
“In an orderly and formal way, and lawful way, we need to overthrow the government of the United States under Donald Trump,” Baldwin said Sunday night at a major fundraising dinner for New Hampshire’s Democratic Party.
“I flew here this morning after doing ‘Saturday Night Live’ last night,” the actor, comedian and longtime liberal political activist told a crowd of some 800 party office-holders, candidates, officials and activists, drawing loud applause.
Baldwin said his role as Trump on “SNL” wasn’t supposed to last as long as it has.
“‘Just three shows,’ he said,” Baldwin recalled “SNL” producer Lorne Michaels saying as he tried to convince the actor to portray then-candidate Trump. “‘Till the election,’ he said. ‘Then he’ll be gone,’ he said. ‘Three shows. It will be fun,’ he said.”
But Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election resulted in an extension of Baldwin’s run on the late-night comedy show – including this weekend’s opening sketch about Trump’s recent meeting with rapper Kanye West.
ALEC BALDWIN: 'EVER SINCE I PLAYED TRUMP, BLACK PEOPLE LOVE ME'
Turning serious, Baldwin then rallied the crowd to vote in next month’s midterm elections, saying “this election and the one that follows in 2020 will be the most consequential elections since the election of FDR.”
He added: “It is time to overthrow the government of Donald Trump -- not in a violent way or unlawful way -- but it must be overthrown nonetheless.”
Baldwin ended his nearly 20-minute-long speech by putting his own spin on the president’s famous campaign slogan.
“Let’s make America great again by making Donald Trump a casino operator again,” he said.

“Let’s make America great again by making Donald Trump a casino operator again.”
— Alec Baldwin

Some New Hampshire Republicans criticized the state’s Democrats for choosing Baldwin as their keynote speaker. They pointed to Baldwin’s past problematic behavior, including making abusive comments to and about women, and making homophobic remarks.
Taking questions from reporters after his speech, Baldwin didn’t directly answer.
“Most of the time people are trying to tar me with a brush about defending Woody Allen,” he said, referring to the filmmaker who has long faced allegations of sexual assault, which he has denied.
Baldwin also told reporters that he’s “always dreamed” of running for office himself, but explained it’s not in the cards for him at this time.
“My wife told me she’d divorce me if I ran for office,” he joked.
He also downplayed suggestions that his Democratic activism would limit the success of “The Alec Baldwin Show,” his new venture on ABC.
Baldwin has long been a backer of Democratic candidates and causes. He famously declared that he’d move to Canada if then-Texas Gov. George Bush won the 2000 presidential election. Though Bush did win, Baldwin didn’t move.
More recently, Baldwin campaigned last year for Democrat Ralph Northam in Virginia’s hotly contested gubernatorial election. And last November he headlined the Iowa Democrats’ major fall fundraising gala.
ALEC BALDWIN REVEALS DISLIKE FOR STEPHEN COLBERT OVER MEDDLING QUESTION
New Hampshire is the state that holds the first presidential primary every four years -- and Sunday night’s dinner over the years has been a key stop for potential Democratic White House hopefuls.
Baldwin previously made headlines in June when he told radio host Howard Stern that if he made a 2020 presidential bid, he would beat Trump.
“If I ran, I would win,” Baldwin said. “I would absolutely win.”
Baldwin said Sunday that if he had decided to run, “I thought it would be such a pleasure to go around the country and try to remind people that, Let’s get back to a time of common sense.”
But Baldwin said he’s not very optimistic when he considers the potential field of Democrats vying for the party’s presidential nomination in 2020.
“I’m hoping that someone that isn’t necessarily on the horizon right now would materialize,” Baldwin said, “because I don’t think anybody that’s a frontrunner now of the top six, seven, eight names that I’ve seen, I don’t think any of them is going to have an easy time of it.”
He also took another shot at the president.
“Every day I wake up, I still am horrified,” he said. “I feel like I’m in some dream that Trump is president of the United States. I almost can’t even say it.”

Trumps to tour Michael storm devastation in Florida, Georgia; search continues for missing residents

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump were scheduled to travel to Florida’s Panhandle on Monday to get a firsthand look at the devastation in the region wrought by Hurricane Michael.
The president was also scheduled to visit South Georgia, which also was battered by Michael, Reuters reported. The storm came ashore Wednesday before moving up the East Coast with 155 mph winds.
The president and first lady were scheduled to arrive at Elgin Air Force in Florida before noon ET Monday and return to the White House in the evening.
Late Sunday, Trump declared a state of emergency in Georgia, releasing federal resources to help the state. The White House said it was fully committed to helping state and local agencies with recovery efforts.
HURRICANE MICHAEL STRENGTHENS TO CATEGORY 4 STORM, CONSIDERED ‘EXTREMELY DANGEROUS’
As a Category 4 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, Michael was one of the most powerful storms to make landfall in U.S. history. Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Brock Long has called the destruction some of the worst he’s ever seen. Before being appointed to head FEMA by President Trump, Long held emergency management positions in Georgia and Alabama, and with a private consulting firm.
As of Sunday, the storm had killed nearly 20 people in four states, while dozens more remained missing in Florida Panhandle communities, Reuters reported. FEMA spokesman David Passey told Fox News: “We are confident that the number of people not yet accounted for will decline as family members can reconnect.”
Passey said FEMA and other agencies will remain in the area for several months to aid the recovery. The death toll was expected to rise as rescue officials continue their search for bodies or survivors. But damaged roads and infrastructure brought by the storm has hampered rescue efforts, officials say.
HURRICANE MICHAEL’S DEATH TOLL MAY RISE, AS RESCUERS COMB THROUGH RUBBLE
One of the hardest hit communities was Mexico Beach, Fla., whose mayor said dozens of residents remained unaccounted for.
“If we lose only one life, to me that’s going to be a miracle,” Mayor Al Cathey told reporters. He said of the 1,000 residents of Mexico Beach, 46 remained missing.
Cathey estimated 250 residents stayed behind when the hurricane struck. He said search-and-rescue teams in the beach town had combed areas with the worst damage. He said enough food and water had been brought in for the residents who remain. Even some cellphone service had returned to the devastated community.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott said the storm left Mexico Beach with heavy debris and rubble, with some homes blown across the street. He said more than 1,700 search workers have been deployed to check 25,000 homes.

Cowardly Antifa Cartoons

Kamala Harris, sharp critic of Trump, Kavanaugh, plans visits to Iowa, other states, raising speculation about 2020 run

Hope she runs in 2020 because if this is the best the democrats have President Trump will surely win again.

U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif. drew attention and criticism for her exchanges with Brett Kavanaugh during a Senate panel's hearings on Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court. (Associated Press)

In what will likely stoke speculation about a potential 2020 presidential run, U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris of California plans to visit several states, including Iowa, later this month ahead of the midterm elections.
Harris, a Democrat, will stop in Des Moines on Oct. 22, where she is expected to speak at an event organized by Polk County Democrats, and in Cedar Rapids on Oct. 23, with other stops in between. She last visited the state in 2008 as San Francisco’s district attorney to campaign for then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama.
In recent months, Harris, 53, has actively campaigned for Democrats around the country ahead of next month's midterms, helping to raise more than $5 million for party candidates. She recently said she would "take a look" at a possible 2020 presidential run, the Hill reported.
The first-term senator is one of several Democrats contemplating presidential bids to challenge President Trump. Iowa is considered a prime destination for potential presidential candidates, because the Iowa caucuses traditionally launch a presidential election year.

Senate Judiciary Committee members Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., left, and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., arrive at the chamber for the final vote to confirm Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, at the Capitol in Washington. (Associated Press)

The other Democrats visiting Iowa have included U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, who recently headlined a party event in Des Moines, and Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, who recently campaigned for Fred Hubbell, the party's candidate for Iowa governor.
During the summer, Harris endorsed Deidre DeJear, a Democrat who is running for Iowa secretary of state.
But before her Corn Belt visit, Harris will hold campaign events this coming Friday in South Carolina and Oct. 21 in Wisconsin. She also recently campaigned for Democrats in Arizona and Ohio.
Harris' national profile rose sharply over her opposition to Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh while serving on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
During Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, Harris and Kavanaugh had a testy exchange over whether he discussed the Russia investigation being conducted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller with anyone at a law firm associated with Trump’s personal lawyer.
“I think you’re thinking of someone and you don’t want to tell us,” Harris said when Kavanaugh responded that he couldn’t remember if he’d had such conversations.
She called the hearing a “sham” and a “disgrace” and accused Kavanaugh of being anti-women.
“He was nominated for the purpose of taking away a woman’s constitutionally protected right to make her own health care decisions,” she tweeted in September. “Make no mistake - this is about punishing women.”
But in September, the Washington Post gave Harris a rating of Four Pinocchios, saying she selectively edited a video of Kavanaugh comments about abortion-inducing drugs to argue that he is against birth control.
She’s also been an outspoken voice against Trump and Republicans, blasting them for their policies on everything from immigration to health care.
On Oct. 3 in Washington, Harris offered what the Atlantic magazine described as a possible preview of how she might respond to President Trump in a head-to-head campaign.
"Stop being mean," Harris responded when asked for her reaction to Trump's mocking of Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford during a campaign rally.
Some recent numbers may reveal why Harris is making the Iowa visit: A recent David Binder Research poll of likely Iowa caucus-goers showed that 37 percent favored former Vice President Joe Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination 2020, Politico reported, followed by Elizabeth Warren (16 percent), Bernie Sanders (12 percent), Harris (10 percent) and Booker (8 percent).

Calls for civility after vandalism, violent clashes outside GOP headquarters in New York

The Metropolitan Republican Club

A fool is nauseous, but a coward worse.

The Metropolitan Republican Club was vandalized with broken windows, spray-painted anarchy signs and a threatening message that the 'attack is merely a beginning'; reaction from NRATV contributor and former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino.

Republicans in New York called upon Gov. Andrew Cuomo and other Democrats to denounce vandalism and violence after a Republican office in New York City was damaged this week.
“Last night one of our state headquarter buildings was attacked by radical leftists," said Marc Molinaro, the state Republican Party's nominee to challenge Cuomo for governor. "This type of political violence and rank vandalism is unacceptable. We are one nation and one state. We must not revert to violence under any circumstances."
Molinaro tweeted photos showing that the New York state Republican headquarters had had windows smashed, door locks filled with glue, and "anarchy" symbols spray-painted on the entrance.
In a statement Friday, state Republican Chairman Ed Cox joined Molinaro in calling the attack on GOP headquarters "unacceptable."
Both GOP leaders called on Cuomo to condemn the attack "and call for calm on the political left."
Cox accused Democrats -- including Hillary Clinton and former Attorney General Eric Holder -- of "inciteful rhetoric" that he said "must be stopped before someone gets hurt."
In an interview with CNN, Clinton made comments that some critics said seemed to condone mistreatment of Republicans.
“You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for, what you care about,” Clinton told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on Tuesday. “That’s why I believe, if we are fortunate enough to win back the House and/or the Senate, that’s when civility can start again. But until then, the only thing Republicans seem to recognize and respect is strength.”
The comments were blasted by some Democrats as well as Republicans.
"I can't imagine how you get anything done if you don't bring civility back into politics," said U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., in response to Clinton's remarks. "And that goes for both sides."
Holder was captured on video speaking Sunday at a campaign event for local Georgia Democratic candidates. In the clip, he rejected former first lady Michelle Obama's famous call for civility in politics – adopting a confrontational tone that’s become increasingly fashionable amid the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation fight and other debates.
"It is time for us, as Democrats, to be as tough as they are, to be as dedicated as they are, to be as committed as they are," Holder told the crowd. "Michelle always says -- I love her; she and my wife are like, really tight, which always scares me and Barack -- but Michelle always says, 'When they go low, we go high.' No. When they go low, we kick 'em." 
President Trump, in an interview Thursday on “Fox & Friends,” rebuked Holder, calling his “kick” remark “disgusting” and “dangerous.”
“He better be careful what he’s wishing for,” Trump told Fox News. “That’s a disgusting statement for him to make.”
The vandalism that occurred at the New York GOP headquarters overnight Thursday was followed Friday evening by violence outside the same office that resulted in three arrests.
Videos posted online showed several men kicking a man who was on the ground.
The clashes followed a speech at the headquarters by the founder of a far-right group. Police said Saturday they were reviewing video and could make additional arrests.
The speaker was Gavin McInnes, founder of the Proud Boys, a group that describe themselves as "western chauvinists."
The clashes appeared to be between the Proud Boys and groups that were protesting McInnes' speech. No serious injuries were reported.
The three people who were arrested face assault charges.
After the Friday evening clashes, Cuomo denounced the violence that occurred at the GOP headquarters.
"Authorities must review these videos immediately and make arrests and prosecute as appropriate," he said. "Hate cannot and will not be tolerated in New York."
New York City Public Advocate Letitia James, a Democrat who is running for state attorney general, said, "I am disturbed and disgusted by the videos I've seen of members of the neo-fascist, white supremacist Proud Boys group engaging in hate-fueled mob violence on the streets of New York City."
In response to Thursday's overnight vandalism, Geoff Berman, executive director of the New York State Democratic Committee, said his party has "zero tolerance for violence."
"This type of divisiveness is repugnant to everything we believe as New Yorkers," he said, before turning his criticism on Republicans. "That being said, Ed Cox and Marc Molinaro's rhetoric on this is wildly inappropriate. We need less hate and division - not more."

Patriot Prayer rally in Portland turns bloody; American flag saved from flames

Joey Gibson, left, leader of Patriot Prayer, heads a previous rally in Portland, Ore., June 30, 2018.

Members of opposing groups violently clashed in downtown Portland, Ore., on Saturday night during an event that was billed as a march for “law and order.”

Participants with the conservative Patriot Prayer group and counter-demonstrators with Antifa got into a bloody melee outside a popular bar where members on both sides used bear spray, fists and batons to beat each other, the Oregonian reported.

Police fired pepper balls and other non-lethal impact munitions to break up the brawls and there were no immediate reports of arrests. Earlier in the evening, police reported seeing participants from both groups with hard-knuckle gloves, knives and firearms.
No weapons were reported seized. Authorities said four people received medical attention, but it was not known if any were taken to a hospital.
The two groups have clashed in the city before.
The march, dubbed “Flash March for Law and Oder in PDX,” was organized by Patriot Prayer leader Joey Gibson in response to Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler’s oversight of the city’s police department. (PDX is the abbreviation for Portland International Airport that is sometimes used as shorthand for the city as well.)
The Patriot Prayer group gathered around 6 p.m. near Pioneer Courthouse Square and marched through downtown holding a sign that read “Replace PDX Mayor!”
The violence erupted after Gibson and about three dozen people waving American flags and reciting patriotic chants walked toward a street memorial for Patrick Kimmons, 27, a black man who was fatally shot by Portland police last month.
At the vigil, they were met by counter-protesters chanting “Black Lives Matter.” The fighting broke out 20 minutes later.
Video posted online shows a protester at one point lighting an American flag on fire. Seconds later someone snatches the flag and puts the flames out.
Saturday’s violence unfolded amid a series of clashes between rival political factions that have gained national attention.
Gibson called for the Saturday march in response to an Oct. 6 incident in which a 74-year-old driver clashed with a group that was protesting police brutality. The police department came under scrutiny for what critics saw as a hands-off approach to the event.
“This isn't political, it's just wrong,” a post on the event’s Facebook page reads. “It's a lack of respect for not only the law but just other humans.”
In a video of the incident that went viral, marchers are seen blocking traffic and directing traffic when the motorist drives through a group of marchers and then speeds off. Some protesters catch up to him and begin pounding on the car before the driver leaves.
The driver later said he meant no harm, he just wanted to get away from the protest, Fox News reported.