Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) and Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan (D) are pushing back against President Donald Trump’s threat to “take back” the city of Seattle amid intensifying protests.
Inslee and Durkan took to Twitter on Thursday with responses to the president’s remarks. Inslee fired back with a mocking tweet as he suggested Trump stay out of state government affairs.
“A man who is totally incapable of governing should stay out of Washington state’s business. ‘Stoop’ tweeting,” Inslee said highlighting Trump’s misspelling of the word “stop.”
A man who is totally incapable of governing should stay out of Washington state’s business. “Stoop” tweeting. https://t.co/O6i04qmZ9v
— Jay Inslee (@JayInslee) June 11, 2020
Durkan also chimed in with a mocking tweet, saying, “Make us all safe. Go back to your bunker.”
The tweet referenced reports of Trump going down to the White House bunker amid nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd, as previously reported on IJR.
Make us all safe. Go back to your bunker. #BlackLivesMatter https://t.co/H3TXduhlY4
— Jenny Durkan (@MayorJenny) June 11, 2020
Inslee and Durkan’s statements come amid a series of recent developments. For the last two weeks, protests have taken place nationwide following Floyd’s death. Many cities have now expanded protests to highlight police brutality, systemic racism, and institutional racism.
During protests on Tuesday evening, protestors flooded Seattle’s City Hall demanding Durkan resign.
And after over an hour inside City Hall, protesters are headed out and chanting “Defund SPD” as they leave. #seattleprotest pic.twitter.com/jE6eXkm905
— Jake Goldstein-Street (@GoldsteinStreet) June 10, 2020
Scenes from the #SeattleAutonomousZone or #CHAZ. Beautiful murals. A lot of community. A boarded up Seattle Police East Precinct.
— Deedee Sun (@DeedeeKIRO7) June 10, 2020
But also – some protestors tell me they feel this detracts from the goal of making strides towards police accountability & ending systemic racism. pic.twitter.com/t2yWPTfYbX
The Seattle Police Department’s East Precinct and a six-block radius around the precinct are also being occupied by protesters. The precinct has been declared the city’s first autonomous zone titled, “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone,” which is referred to as “CHAZ” on social media.
A banner is also hung outside of the precinct that reads, “THIS SPACE IS NOW PROPERTY OF THE SEATTLE PEOPLE.” The streets surrounding the precinct are also being occupied by protesters.
Seattle: Domestic Terrorist / Anarchist take over a police precinct & establishing a 6 block parameter with armed patrols to keep the police away. Seattle’s Mayor may surrender another precinct. America is on the verge of a revolution. Wake up 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/dVYtBaiIhK
— SBA (@SBANYPD_Archive) June 11, 2020
In response to the declaration, Trump took to Twitter to criticize Inslee and Durkan while pressing them to immediately take action against who he describes as “anarchists.”
“Radical Left Governor [Jay Inslee] and the Mayor of Seattle are being taunted and played at a level that our great Country has never seen before,” Trump tweeted late Wednesday.
He continued, “Take back your city NOW. If you don’t do it, I will. This is not a game. These ugly Anarchists must be stooped [sic] IMMEDIATELY. MOVE FAST!”
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1270914092295950337
As of Thursday morning, the precinct and businesses in the autonomous zones remain boarded up.
Seattle @MayorJenny is allowing a dangerous situation to fester. #Antifa militants have taken over & created an “autonomous zone” in city w/their own rules. Police precinct abandoned. Antifa set up barricades to create a border. Calling for volunteers to provide armed guard. pic.twitter.com/ksQI4NI5kP
— Andy Ngo 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) June 9, 2020
At the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, where police are nowhere to be seen — and the current speaker is injecting some urgency into the crowd to get demands met quickly before Washington reopens post-COVID.
— Scott Greenstone (@evergreenstone) June 11, 2020
“If they say ‘go back to work,’ this crowd is going to get pretty thin.” pic.twitter.com/iAQujXYyj4
Inslee and Durkan have yet to announce plans for a resolution, as of publication.