President Trump criticized Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler on Thursday, calling him “pathetic” for his attempt to sympathize with Black Lives Matter protesters in Oregon City, only to be booed and gassed by federal troops.
“He made fun of himself,” Trump told Sean Hannity on Fox News. “He wanted to be among the people, so he got into the crowd and was left breathless. That was the end of it.
“So it was pretty pathetic,” he said.
Wheeler made his way to the steps of the Multnomah County Justice Center on Wednesday to speak to the thousands of protesters who have gathered there for nearly two months.
But when he started speaking, the crowd yelled at him with chants of “tear gas Teddy” and “do your job!”
“I’m with you,” said the mayor to the crowd, only to receive teasing in response.
Things only got worse for Wheeler from there: He was caught in a wave of tear gas fired by federal officials sent into town by Trump.
“I’m not going to lie, it hurts,” he said. “It is difficult to breathe, and I can tell you with 100 percent honesty that I saw nothing that triggered this response.”
Wheeler has vehemently opposed the presence of federal forces in the city, saying they have only escalated the violence.
But Trump told Hannity that the protesters “don’t respect the police.”
“The police do an amazing job,” he said. “It’s a very hard work. It is a very dangerous job. “
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