White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany signaled that it is unlikely President Trump will address the nation after a week of violent protests across the country.
Even as many people asked whether Trump would deliver an Oval Office address to urge calm after the demonstrations began last week following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in Minneapolis police custody last week, McEnany insisted that her boss has “repeatedly” addressed the situation.
“He has addressed the absolutely horrific video of George Floyd. He’s routinely addressed … the issue of law and order in our streets. He’s issued several statements. … A national Oval Office address is not going to stop antifa. What’s going to stop antifa is action, and this president has committed to acting on this,” McEnany said Monday on Fox & Friends.
McEnany tweeted Sunday that the media “FASLELY” reported that Trump has been “‘silent'” on Floyd’s death. She shared a quote in which the president called the killing a “tragedy.”
Trump has blamed the left-wing antifa movement for the violence broken out across the country in several cities, including looting, arson, and major clashes between protesters and law enforcement. The president said Sunday the United States would designate antifa as a domestic terrorist organization.
Five thousand National Guardsmen have been activated and sent to cities across the country to help quell the growing unrest.
McEnany said Trump will speak with governors on Monday and will hold various meetings on how to combat the unrest in the country. The official White House schedule shows McEnany will hold a press briefing at 2 p.m. ET.
“This president has been very clear that we need law and order in this country,” McEnany said. “He’s taken extraordinary action talking about activating the National Guard, as we saw happen in Minnesota, criminalizing interstate travel that is geared towards inciting violence, making sure that those individuals are prosecuted, labeling antifa as a domestic terrorist entity that will be prosecuted as such.”
The protests began after Floyd died May 25 after a Minneapolis police officer, who has since been fired, pushed his knee on Floyd’s neck to restrain him to the point where he became unconscious. In a viral video, Floyd can be heard saying he can’t breathe several times.
The officer, identified as Derek Chauvin, was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter last week. Three other officers involved with Floyd’s detainment were fired but have not been charged.
