President Donald Trump says he will use the military to “stop the violence and restore security and safety” if states and cities do not take action to stop the violence.
But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) says she disagrees with that idea. In an interview with NPR’s “All Things Considered” on Tuesday, Pelosi said, “I don’t think the president’s calling out the military are warranted.”
She continued, “I think that there, by and large, have been peaceful demonstrations in large numbers across the country. There has been some violence — and there is no place for that in any of our expressions of concern that the American people want to make — and violence must be addressed.”
“But there is no reason for the U.S. military to be called out for this,” Pelosi added.
Protests erupted around the country after the death of George Floyd. Many have been peaceful with some police officers kneeling in solidarity with the protesters. But in several U.S. cities, the demonstrations turned violent at night.
During remarks in the Rose Garden on Monday, Trump addressed the violent demonstrations and called on mayors and governors to crack down on the violence.
However, he said, “If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them.”
Pelosi also condemned the decision to disperse protesters outside of the White House on Monday, “That the federal forces would be used to disperse a crowd using billy clubs and tear gas takes us to a status of a banana republic to make way for the president to come out.”
Trump received bipartisan criticism after law enforcement dispersed crowds who were protesting outside of the White House on Monday night. After the crowds were pushed back, Trump walked out of the White House and over to the historic St. John’s Church to pose for a picture.
In response to criticism of the tactics used, the U.S. Park Police released a statement that denied that officers used tear gas to scatter protesters.
The statement also said that some people had thrown “bricks, frozen water bottles, and caustic liquids” at officers. Additionally, the Park Police said that “intelligence had revealed calls for violence against the police.”
Read the statement below:
Chief of Park Police releases statement on events in Lafayette Park yesterday. 'No tear gas was used by USPP officers or other assisting law enforcement partners to close the area at Lafayette Park.' https://t.co/jFLnJxPWmY pic.twitter.com/vSD34o70Je
— Byron York (@ByronYork) June 2, 2020
Other lawmakers said they opposed Trump’s vow to use the military to end the violence. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said he would introduce legislation that would ban Trump from using the military to disperse protesters.
“I never thought we would have to use the NDAA to make clear that the U.S. military shouldn’t be used as an agent of force against American citizens who are lawfully assembling,” Kaine said.