President Donald Trump paid a visit to the city of Kenosha, Wisconsin on Tuesday. This visit has been met with opposition and accusations from Democrats claiming that he is merely doing this to take advantage of the chaos and corral more supporters to his campaign.
What We Know:
- Ever since the shooting of Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man and father, Kenosha has been the focal point of many protests and unrest. The seven bullet wounds he received from police has now left him paralyzed from the waist down. One of the more controversial outcomes of these demonstrations so far was an encounter of 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse and protesters, which ended up in the shooting and death of two people.
- Trump seemingly defended Rittenhouse Monday afternoon during a White House coronavirus update. He undeniably sided with the suspect’s attorney’s argument of the teen acting in self-defense against the protesters. The president went onto add that perhaps his visit to the city will alleviate the looming tension of the past week. “It could also increase enthusiasm and it could increase love and respect for our country,” he said.
- One of the other main reasons the president is visiting Kenosha is to assess and survey the “property affected by recent riots,” according to his agenda. While taking that in, Trump also has plans to pay a visit to an emergency operations center and host a Roundtable on Wisconsin Community Safety to discuss recent events.
- As of late, there have not been any plans revealed for the President to meet with Blake or his family. Something Trump noted prior to this visit on Tuesday was police officer behavior in regards to shootings. He made a comparison of some police officer’s decision making to “golfers who choke” by missing a short putt.
“I write today to respectfully ask you to reconsider.”@GovEvers sends letter to @realDonaldTrump, asking him not to come to #Kenosha adding, “I am concerned your presence will only hinder our healing.” pic.twitter.com/0xhrG0JXhP
— Chernéy Amhara (@CherneyAmharaTV) August 30, 2020
- Moreover, several Democratic state and local leaders have argued against the president’s visit, as it could end up causing more harm than good. Reporter Chernéy Amhara tweeted a letter written by Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers on Sunday addressing Trump. “I am concerned your presence will only hinder our healing,” he said.
- Evers continued to express his concerns often citing how Kenosha, along with many other Wisconsin communities, are tired and are working hard to rebuild together. He referred to the mass redirect of resources to focus on his visit that could have been used in “supporting the community’s response” instead.
Many other political analysts side with the governor and suggest that Trump’s visit to Wisconsin, should he happen to go off on a tangent or do something that could encourage counterdemonstrations, could prove detrimental over time.
