US1 min(s) read
Published 15:40 18 Oct 2020 GMT
Donald Trump has said that there was "something very beautiful" about watching people "getting pushed around" after the National Guard responded to protesters in Minneapolis following George Floyd's death.
As reported by the Washington Post, Trump made the comments during a rally in Muskegon, Michigan, on Saturday night (October 17).
"Wasn’t that beautiful?" Trump said at an evening campaign rally in Michigan.
You can watch Trump make the comments below:
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"In Minneapolis‚ they came in, these soldiers with the most expensive helmets in the history of mankind [...]
"And they had their tear gas and they had their pepper spray - which the other side doesn’t want you to use, because it's 'not nice'.
"You know, they can throw cans at you. They can throw rocks and stones and hurt your police, but you’re not allowed to guard yourself with tear gas, pepper spray - which 100% are effective."
Speaking of the National Guards' intervention in Minneapolis, Trump stated: "So, they just marched forward - and the whole thing was over."
"I don't know... there's something about that, when you're watching everybody getting pushed around there's something very beautiful about it. I don't care what anyone says.
The 74-year-old President then admitted that his comments were "not politically correct", but told the crowd: "But you people get it; you get it probably better than I do even."
In response, Trump's supports in attendance cheered and applauded the POTUS' comments.
Protests across the country were sparked in Minneapolis back in May after footage showing ex-police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on George Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes circulated online.
Floyd, 46, was pronounced dead following his arrest, causing people across the nation to take to the streets and call for an end to racism, injustice, and police brutality.
Despite cheers from the crowd, many people have taken to Twitter to slam the President's comments.
One Twitter user replied to the video, saying: "This is straight up enciting violence! The whole hate rally is brewing a damn war."
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A second added: "And how is pushing someone around is a beautiful thing. Especially if it's causing some pain."
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Another social media user tweeted: "The very definition, the embodiment, of a bully. We can’t do another 4 years of this."
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During the rally, the crowd also took part in chants of "lock her up" after Trump insisted that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer needs to relax the Covid-19 restrictions.
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Per The Detroit News, people started cheering and chanting after Trump told the crowd: "You've got to get your governor to open up her state. [...] And get your schools open. The schools have to be open."
As the crowd started chanting "lock her up", Trump said: "Lock them all up."
In response to the chants, Whitmer tweeted: "This is exactly the rhetoric that has put me, my family, and other government officials’ lives in danger while we try to save the lives of our fellow Americans. It needs to stop."
