Trump Says He Will Put Chairman Of Joint Chiefs Of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, ‘In Charge’ Of Suppressing Protests

President Donald Trump said he will put the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Of Staff, General Mark Milley, “in charge” after threatening to use military power and Insurrection Act of 1807 to suppress the George Floyd protestors.

As Trump encouraged state governors to implement “tougher” measures against the crowds protesting the death of Floyd for seven days, he criticized the local officials in a private phone call, promising to put General Milley “in charge,” according to audiotape of the call. In a phone call, Trump called Gen. Milley a “fighter” and a “warrior” and praised his “victories.”

“You have to dominate, if you don’t dominate you’re wasting your time. They’re going to run over you, you’re going to look like a bunch of jerks,” Trump said.

In his Rose Garden speech on Monday, Trump supported the notions of “healing the hatred” and “justice” and condemned the acts of violence during the demonstrations. In a private phone call, he told the governors: “You have to arrest people, and you have to try people, and they have to go jail for long periods of time.”

Pentagon hasn’t made any public statements yet, though Pentagon spokesperson U.S. Army Lt. Col. Chris Mitchell told NBC that Gen. Milley “will continue to advise the secretary of Defense.”

Trump called local governors to use force after a week-long series of protests shook the United States. The protests were sparked after the death of an African American man, George Floyd, who died after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck during an arrest. According to independent autopsy results, Floyd died due to asphyxiation.

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Article by Polina Kuznetsova