What he called them · First term · № 95
Called Minneapolis protesters 'THUGS' and warned 'when the looting starts, the shooting starts'
“....These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won't let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!”
- Said
- Subject
- Minneapolis protesters after George Floyd's killing
- Target
- American cities
- Place
- Minneapolis
- Topic
- Justice & the courts
- Era
- First term
What happened
Shortly after midnight on May 29, 2020, after protesters burned a Minneapolis police precinct, Trump tweeted that he 'can't stand back & watch this happen to a great American City, Minneapolis,' called Mayor Jacob Frey 'very weak' and threatened to 'send in the National Guard,' then posted the 'THUGS' tweet. Twitter labeled it for 'glorifying violence' but left it up. The White House said he 'did not glorify violence'; later that day he tweeted that 'Looting leads to shooting' and that the phrase 'was spoken as a fact, not as a statement.'