Tuesday at a press conference, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) accused President Donald Trump of abusing the military by deploying them to clear out protesters in Washington D.C. Monday.
Blumenthal said, “The President’s abhorrent abuse of the military is what you’d expect from a two-bit dictator. From the President of the United States, it’s repulsive and frightening. Militarizing law enforcement is simply no answer to the peaceful protests that we’ve seen largely around the country. Peaceful protests should be protected. Looting and violence should be stopped.”
When asked about Defense Secretary Mark Esper calling for “dominance on the battlespace” of protests, Blumenthal said, “Secretary Esper’s comment were totally inappropriate. The streets of America are not a battlespace.”
He added, “We need a review of the secretary of defense’s approach to the use of military force if it’s going to be applied to our streets and communities in America as if they were a battlespace. Our citizens are not the enemy.”
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