Imran Yaqub Dhillon
New York
Clashes in Trump supports and protesters,one dead 29 arrested,Trump and Biden clash over violence After Clashes between supporters of Donald Trump and counter-demonstrators in USA state Oregon city Portland police declared a protest “unlawful gathering” , ordering crowds to disperse or risk arrest.
The protest followed a fatal shooting and death of a man. Twenty-nine arrests were made, police said, adding that two of those held had handguns, others had knives and at least one had an expandable baton.
Many in the group of protesters wore helmets, gas masks, goggles and armour. Police said some carried shields and reflective squares used to reflect police lights back at officers. Some threw rocks, eggs, and other items at officers and police vehicles.
On Saturday evening, a caravan of about 600 vehicles carrying supporters of Donald Trump drove through the liberal city. It was met by counter-protesters and skirmishes broke out.
About 15 minutes after the caravan left, a supporter of the rightwing group Patriot Prayer was shot dead.
The Patriot Prayer founder Joey Gibson, a former Republican candidate for US Senate, identified the victim as Aaron “Jay” Danielson, who he called a “good friend”.
Trump retweeted the victim’s name and wrote: “Rest in peace Jay!” It wasn’t clear if the shooting was related to the clashes in Portland, which led Governor Kate Brown to say Oregon state police would send personnel and resources to help keep the situation under control.
Tensions between rival groups have roiled parts of downtown Portland every night for nearly three months. In July, Trump deployed federal forces to crack down on the protests. On Sunday, the president denounced the Portland mayor, Ted Wheeler, a Democrat, as “weak”. Seeking an electoral advantage from a “law and order” message, Trump has often said cities run by Democrats have descended into chaos.
Wheeler told reporters: “What America needs is for [Trump] to be stopped.” He added: “Mr President, how can you think that a comment like that, if you’re watching this, is in any way helpful? It’s an aggressive stance, it is not collaborative. I certainly reached out … by saying earlier that you need to do your part and I need to do my part and then we both need to be held accountable.
Trump had appeared to be encouraging his supporters to move into Portland. After the shooting, the president shared a video of his supporters driving into the city and called them “GREAT PATRIOTS!”
Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, accused Trump of “recklessly encouraging” violence.
“He may believe tweeting about law and order makes him strong,” Biden said, “but his failure to call on his supporters to stop seeking conflict shows just how weak he is.”
