Trump criticizes Portland officials, claims city “is burning to the ground”
U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that “Portland is burning to the ground,” blaming “paid insurrectionists” and the far-left group antifa for the unrest in Oregon’s largest city, reports a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House, Trump claimed, “It’s insurrectionists all over the place. It’s antifa, and yet the politicians are petrified. Look, the politicians are afraid for their lives. That’s the only reason that they say like there’s nothing happening... The place is burning down and they pretend like there’s nothing happening.”
The President’s comments contrasted with reports from Portland, where witnesses and media outlets said federal law enforcement officers had escalated tensions during Saturday’s protests near the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility.
Hundreds of demonstrators gathered to oppose immigration policies and Trump’s plan to deploy Oregon National Guard troops. According to The Oregonian/OregonLive, federal agents used tear gas and fired pepper balls into the crowd. An 84-year-old couple told the outlet that officers rushed at them “for no apparent reason.”
Later that evening, U.S. District Judge Karin J. Immergut issued an order temporarily blocking the deployment of the National Guard. Oregon Public Broadcasting reported that, despite the ruling, federal officers “pushed protesters hundreds of yards down city streets and fired more munitions... without any clear signs of provocation.”
Earlier, it was reported that U.S. President Donald Trump indicated he was prepared to deploy troops to Portland, Oregon, to protect ICE facilities, which he claimed were under threat from “domestic terrorists.”
