Trump planning to deploy federal officers in Detroit "over next 3 weeks"
DETROIT - President Donald Trump plans to deploy federal officers in Detroit "over the next 3 weeks."
After making threats earlier in the week to send law enforcement from the Justice Department to U.S. cities to quell violent protests and deter crime, Trump is following it up with more planned formal action.
"Over the next 3 weeks, the Justice Department plans to further expand the initiative into Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee," read a daily review on the White Hosue's website.
On Monday, Trump said he may send "we're going to have more federal law enforcement" in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, Baltimore, and Oakland after they were already deployed in Portland weeks ago.
The deployment is part of what Attorney General Bill Barr called "Operation Legend."
"These are anarchists, and the politicians out there - yes they're weak, but they're afraid of these people, they're actually afraid of these people - and that's why they say we don't want the federal government helping," said Trump in the oval office.
A press release from the Attorney General William P. Barr confirmed the expansion of Operation Legend.
As part of the expansion, Attorney General Barr directed the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, DEA, and ATF to significantly increase resources into Chicago and Albuquerque in the coming weeks to help state and local officials fight high levels of violent crime, particularly gun violence.
The press release did not mention plans for any other cities.
Plans like these fall in line with the law-and-order brand the president has touted since protests began to grow, following the death of George Floyd.
The mayor of Portland and Oregon's governor both admonished the president for the decision to send officers to the city. Since mentioning Detroit, the suggestion has also drawn widespread condemnation from Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and Attorney General Dana Nessel.
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Duggan and Detroit police chief James Craig issued a statement on the matter Tuesday:
"Neither the City of Detroit nor the Detroit Police Department has had any contact from any representative of the federal government about any plans to sends DHS officers to Detroit. There could be no possible justification for such an action. The Detroit Police Department has had the support of the Detroit community in making sure our City did not have a single store looted or a single fire started during the protests."
The mayor also tweeted out a video last night rebuking any suggestion of federal law enforcement coming to the city. He also said the city would accept help if it meant adding more gun prosecutors to the city.
It's not entirely clear what violence Trump has been referring to. Protests in Detroit have been peaceful beyond the first couple of days when demonstrators clashed with police in late May and early June.
Craig has noted an uptick in violent crimes after much of the city's pandemic restrictions were lifted, with a 7% increase in more shootings. Over the weekend, more than 30 people were injured in shootings.