Karen Bass: Purpose of Trump's visit to Kenosha is "to campaign and to agitate"
30 August 2020
Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, criticized President Trump for his plans to visit Kenosha, Wisconsin, arguing on CNN's "State of the Union" that the only purpose of the trip is "to campaign and to agitate."
Why it matters: Kenosha has been rocked by violent protests since the police shooting of Jacob Blake, with clashes last week culminating in the shooting death of two people by a 17-year-old member of an armed right-wing group. Trump plans to visit the city on Tuesday to "survey damage from recent riots," according to a White House spokesperson.
What she's saying: "I think his visit has one purpose, and one purpose only, and that is to agitate things and to make things worse," Bass said.
- "You know, what also happened in Portland too — you saw a parade of Trump supporters actually, actively shooting paintballs at peaceful protesters. And the president, in my opinion, encourages that. He actually retweeted the people firing paint guns."
- "So I think he only intends to agitate things. He is campaigning. It's clear his campaign is all about law and order, it's a throwback to the past, and he's going to do everything to disrupt law and order in this time."
The big picture: Bass did not respond when asked whether Democratic nominee Joe Biden should visit Kenosha. Biden plans to travel to an undisclosed location on Monday to "condemn violence, and to note that chaos has unfolded" on President Trump's watch, per the New York Times.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.