Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf defended the federal government’s response to the Portland protests on Sunday and criticized local leaders for claiming that the protests are peaceful.
Speaking on “Sunday Morning Futures,” Wolf said the Portland protests were different from the “normal criminal activity” that is being witnessed in cities like Chicago, Kansas City and other metropolitan areas across the country.
“They come armed with rocks, bottles, baseball bats, power tools, commercial grade fireworks, provoking that violence and attacking their violence in federal courts and federal law enforcement officers,” Wolf said of Portland.
He added: “That is very different from what is happening in Chicago, places like Chicago, Albuquerque, Kansas City. That’s where you see normal criminal activity, street crime, what we say about gangs and drug traffickers. “
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Several lawmakers from New York to Portland protested against the Trump administration sending officers to their cities, especially after reports that unidentified federal agents detained protesters in Portland and took them in unmarked vehicles. Portland has been affected by near-daily protests against police brutality and systemic racism since George Floyd’s death while in Minneapolis police custody on May 25.
Local authorities have also complained that the waves have only exacerbated tensions, and criminal justice experts say the efforts defy explanation due to the unprecedented time the United States is experiencing, with a pandemic, historic unemployment and a trial. about racism and how people of color are treated. For the police.
“The president is attacking progressive cities with inopportune and low-skilled troops,” Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said last week in a letter signed by 16 mayors asking Trump to reverse his orders. “Militarized agents are terrorizing the American people. We must unite for peace and reform, and against these non-American tactics. “
Wolf said Sunday that if officials in Oregon did their job, then the federal government would not have to send its agents.
“We see that the city leadership there has fostered an environment that allows these criminals to do this overnight, intact, absolutely intact. It is time for Portland to join other responsible cities in this country that are working with the federal police to address this violence, ”she said.
Wolf added: “We need Portland to step up to the plate, do its duty, and work with us to address the violent criminal activity that occurs every night.”
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Last week, the president announced that, along with Portland, he is deploying 100 federal agents in Chicago to help combat rising crime rates, a move that marks an expansion of White House intervention in law enforcement. as Trump continues to position himself as the “law and order” president.
While dispatching federal agents to assist local law enforcement is unprecedented, Attorney General Bill Barr announced a similar escalation effort in December for seven cities that had seen an increase in violence: the type of federal agent sent and some of his tactics have raised concern among state and local lawmakers.
Typically, the Department of Justice dispatches officers under its own umbrella, such as officers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, or the Drug Enforcement Administration. But this major effort will include officers from the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), who generally conduct investigations of drug trafficking and child exploitation.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
