WASHINGTON, DC–President Donald Trump’s speech to the Major Cities Chiefs Association Winter Conference was seen by some in attendance as a major shift from what law enforcement had experienced under President Obama.

A law enforcement source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Breitbart News that since the Trump administration came into power just a few weeks ago, there has been a “seachange” in both the government’s attitude and its level of support for law enforcement.

The source gave specific examples of how the Obama administration had not provided basic training for many law enforcement officials for years, and said that funding had also become scarce, especially during President Obama’s second term. At press time, Breitbart News has not been able to independently verify or contradict the claims.

The source also praised President Trump for bringing up the important issue of mental health treatment during the speech, saying that for years police officers have been asked to act as mental health professionals to deal with people suffering outside of the help of a system which has abandoned them.

The gathering of law enforcement from around the country consisted of a series of closed-door meetings, one of which included an illuminating caution by a North Dakota Sheriff about the nature of the protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. The source said the sheriff outlined the radical leftist nature of the protest, stated that the protesters had been brought in from around the country, and delineated how the media had misrepresented the protests.

As Breitbart News has repeatedly reported, the far left groups responsible for incidents such as the shutdown of the MILO event last week in Berkeley California include groups like By Any Means Necessary (BAMN), as well as groups connected to the Revolutionary Communist Party. Carl Dix, the head of the Revolutionary Communist Party, has also been active in anti-police protest, such as at a 2015 event featuring filmmaker Quentin Tarantino.

BAMN has said it has “no regrets” about the violence in Berkeley, and that it plans to execute similar actions in the future.

The number of police officers killed by firearms increased 56% in 2016 and, in 2017, has already increased again by 25%.

President Trump yesterday met with a group of law enforcement officials at the White House.