How many times has Trump encouraged violence?
4 Min Read
Here's a recent compilation of the incidents during which the former President called for violence during his time in office.
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How many times has Trump encouraged violence?
Among former US President Donald Trump's many transgressions were his repeated calls for violence when he was in office.
Recent disclosures that former President Trump reportedly asked for the shooting of protesters assembled outside the White House in 2020 are part of the pattern.
In a memoir that will be published later this month, former Defense Secretary Mark Esper revealed that former US President Donald Trump wanted police to shoot protesters around the White House demonstrating the death of George Floyd.
According to Axios, Trump allegedly told Esper in June 2020: "Can't you just shoot them? Just shoot them in the legs or something?"
The former Defense Secretary was fired by Trump after the November 2020 elections, which Trump lost to Joe Biden.
Esper's memoir was allowed to be published in its current form after being vetted at the highest levels of the Defense Department, according to Axios. It was reviewed by nearly three dozen 4-star generals, senior civilians, and some cabinet members.
In July 2017, Trump told New York Police in Long Island during a speech, "Please don't be too nice," to the people that were being arrested.
The following month in August 2017, in the aftermath of the white supremacist gathering in Charlottesville, Virginia, Trump failed to denounce the violence categorically, blaming instead "many sides", failing to distinguish between those who attended the "Unite the Right" march and those who protested it.
During a campaign event in Montana in 2018, Trump openly complimented Montana's then-Rep. Greg Gianforte (R), the state's current governor, for having assaulted a reporter earlier. Trump openly expressed that "any man who can execute a body slam is my kind!"
In October 2019, a New York Times article reported that Trump considered filling a trench with water and snakes or alligators and shooting migrants in the legs to keep them out of the US.
While referring to the events in Minneapolis after the murder of George Floyd, Trump said "when the looting starts, the shooting starts," referring to police brutality against Black Americans in the 60s, according to the NYT.
Read more: Black History Month: Black oppression in the United States
In 2020, Trump threatened to use the military to put an end to Black Lives Matter rallies around the country. "If a city or state refuses to take the actions necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them," he said.
According to Vox, Trump indicated an interest in sending the National Guard to Portland, Oregon, to face demonstrators in August 2020 claiming that "We could fix Portland in, I would say, 45 minutes."
According to Vox, Trump praised law enforcement authorities in September 2020 for killing Michael Forest Reinoehl, a self-described Antifa member accused of murdering a right-wing activist the month before. "That’s the way it has to be. There has to be retribution."
When given the opportunity to unambiguously denounce white nationalist violence during the first presidential debate, Trump declined, ordering instead the far-right Proud Boys to "stand back and stand by."
At a rally preceding the Capitol riot on January 6, Trump reiterated bogus assertions that the 2020 election had been stolen and warned supporters that "we're going to walk down to the Capitol," adding that "you'll never take back our country with weakness."
